The future of two Nampa public golf courses is still up in the air, but Nampa Mayor Bob Henry has created a committee to explore how the city could save them.
The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare actually owns the land that the courses are on. The city of Nampa actually leases from it from the state to run the two public golf courses -- Centennial and Ridgecrest.
Health and Welfare has expressed a want to use the land for something else - a large scale development.
The idea is to rezone the area for a mix of commercial, residential, retail, and open space. The state wants to do this because if it's rezoned it could be worth more, which would mean a better return for the state on behalf of the taxpayers.
There is concern from Nampa golfers that they could lose one or both of the courses if the state goes through with redeveloping the land.
That's why Henry is creating a committee to explore the possibility of the city buying one or both of the courses from the state.
While buying the land would ensure the survival of the courses, Henry says there are a lot of things to weigh before a decision is made.
"We are serious about this. We want to do our due diligence," said Henry. "The first thing we need to find out is if the community supports us buying it. I think a lot of that will depend on what the price is for the course is."
Nampa City Council also wants to find out if buying the land is feasible. Among other things, the committee will be looking at is how much everything would cost and how the city would pay for it.
Henry indicated that passing a bond issue would be the most likely source of funding the purchase of the course.
Nampa has a lease on the land through the end of 2019, so the city has some time to weigh the options.