BOISE, Idaho — Idaho’s oldest country club will soon get new name.
"We feel like it would be insensitive to wait any longer," said General Manager of Plantation Country Club, Jayson Petersen.
Plantation Country Club, founded in 1917, got a new owner in December 2018.
Glass Creek LLC, an entity led by investor and developer Will Gustafson, purchased all real and personal property, including the land, clubhouse and intellectual property of the 121-acre private club in Garden City.
Since the sale, members have wondered what will become of the historic property.
On Wednesday, Petersen posted on the club’s Facebook page that they are working to grow and maintain a club that all members can be proud of, and that means renaming the club.
"Although we've been talking about this for the past 18 months, we feel like we can't any longer," Petersen told KTVB.
Petersen said that developers are working on a golf course redesign and planned to unveil a new name.
"We felt from the beginning that 'Plantation Country Club' did not reflect the vision we had for the Club's future: a modern, inclusive, and welcoming Club for all members of the community. The club name should authentically reflect today’s environment and values. In hindsight, the decision to wait to change the name was a mistake, for which ownership takes full responsibility," Petersen wrote.
The response from club members who KTVB spoke with have been favorable so far.
"I thought you know what with all these other changes being made, this is a good thing," said Chris Perry, who has been a member of the Plantation Country Club for 20 years.
Another club member, Dan Reading, agreed.
"Along with the great remodeling and the restructuring we're doing, I think it's the perfect time to take it to the next step," Reading said.
Petersen told KTVB, they are currently in the process of finalizing a new name and look forward to announcing an update in the next week or so.
"The problem is, there are words that carry with them heavy emotional baggage; 'Plantation' is one of those words. For a lot of people, the emotions attached to the word 'Plantation' are powerful and negative. If just one person is made to feel uncomfortable by the name of our Club, that is one too many," said Plantation Country Club owner, Will Gustafson, in a statement to KTVB.