St. Augustine Record editorial denounces Sen. Thrasher's "bad" "ill-timed and now, withdrawn bill on building gof courses in state parks"

Our view: State needs economic boost but not from state park golf courses

Created 03/16/2011 - 12:00am

When state Sen. John Thrasher visited The Record's editorial board last fall, he said the Legislature needed big ideas and he hadn't seen any emerging. He offered none himself that day but said he would if reelected.

We hope his ill-timed and now withdrawn bill on building golf courses in state parks was not one of his big ideas. When we heard about it, our first response was, "What are you thinking, senator?"

The bill came and went quickly last week as did a similar one in the Florida House by Rep. Patrick Rooney, R-West Palm Beach. Thrasher said, in a statement published in The Florida Times-Union after he withdrew his bill, that it "was intended to stimulate tourism and find unique ways to explore economic development." But, after conversations with some constituents and city leaders, "this is not an avenue they are interested in pursuing."

We can think of a lot more ways to boost Florida's sagging economy than putting golf courses in state parks and especially courses that would be built by a single operator on a non-bid contract, another questionable practice. The proposal called for a Jack Nicklaus Golf Trail built by Nicklaus' company. The back story is that Nicklaus pitched an idea to Gov. Rick Scott recently for boosting economic development and this was it. Other states have public golf courses within state parks in Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and Kentucky, for example. What we have heard is that none are money makers.

Florida doesn't need any more golf courses anyway. Golflink.com says the state has 1,481.

The National Golf Foundation says 600 courses nationally have closed in the past five years. The foundation predicts that at least 500 more will close nationally through 2015. Likely Florida courses are on the first and the second lists. Declining patronage is blamed for most of the shutdowns.

While none of the courses in St. Johns County are closing, the county is covering over nine of its 27 holes at its public golf course because rounds of play are declining.

At a time when Gov. Rick Scott is pronouncing "cut,cut,cut" and state economists forecast a $3.6 billion revenue shortfall for the 2012 fiscal year, a better economic strategy would be for the Legislature to go after uncollected tax revenues. These taxes are on Internet sales inside Florida by online retailers and on the full rate of hotel rooms sold at a discounted rate online. They amount to millions of dollars in lost revenue annually.

The Thrasher-Rooney proposals were bad ideas. Collecting lost sales tax revenues is a great idea.