Need help in how to make a public course...

Hi everyone i need help in learning how to make a course in a public park because i unfortunately dont have the funds for owning my own property that i can put it on. being the fact that i live in state college pa i think there will be a good amount of interest for a new golf course. i need to know how to get permission to build a course in the park and then how to get the funding for it. if anyone can help please let me know thanks a bunch/msgboard/images/clipart/happy.gif
oh ps and if you know about any courses in or very near to state college let me know .

You've come to the right place Albert, welcome. You'll find the great minds and pioneers of this game residing on this board as well as a few of us that love smack talking almost as much as we love golf. /msgboard/images/clipart/happy.gif

Here's the link to all the listed courses in PA.

http://www.pdga.com/courses_by_state.php?location=Pennsylvania&order=c ity

There are several online disc golf course proposals that you can customize to your own needs and present to your city's PARD and/or city council. there's a sample one right here.

http://www.pdga.com/cd_ncd-sfdgc.php

Good luck and I'm sure someone else will come along with some better wisdom to share before I can get my morning coffee in me enough to do better than that. /msgboard/images/clipart/happy.gif

[sleeper]

I just wish you could answer your e-mail, Mark!

[lowe]

Also check "How to get a Disc Golf Course in Your Town" by Carlton Howard on the RADL website at http://www.radl.biz/how_to_get_a_course.html

And Disclife's "Course Proposal Template" at http://www.disclife.com/propdoor.shtml

[lowe]

"Weave Your Way on the Web" By Dr. John G. Duesler, Jr. is the definitive treatment with all you'll ever need. Find it at http://www.pdga.com/cd_start.php

Oops, sorry 'bout that Bobby, I spaced it. Gimme a call bud.

See Albert, I've only had a half a pot and already you're flooded with brilliant suggestions. /msgboard/images/clipart/happy.gif

[august]

One of the things that has helped me in dealing with the local governments on the two course installations I have been involved with to date is the creation of a non-profit entity with the IRS, 501c I think. This gets you legit with the federal gov't and you can open a checking account for the funds you will be raising. Even if the local gov't ends up paying for the course entirely, the non-profit designation will set you up for tournaments. The City of Newport News, Virginia paid to install the current course as well as the the one we have yet to install. But they required us to get the non-profit status before we could collect money on their property for the tournaments. In Charlottesville, the County offered up plenty of land but no money. We created a non-profit organization and collected sponsorships, depositing them into the bank account. The non-profit status also got us a free website hosting. The checking account in Newport News is free as well.

I know registering with the gov't can be an unpleasant experience at times, but this is a good thing and can help you along in your goals.

Good call there, Mike! For all the hassle the paperwork for getting 501 status can be, having it gives you instant credibility when you walk in the door of municipal/county/state officials, potential sponsors, and media orgs, not to mention the sales tax break (in most jurisdictions) on materials for course maintenance.

[drdisc]

I always kie the "Sqatters Rigths" method. First you ask them if you can hold an event in the park. Then you put up fence post for targets while you are working on the fairways.
Then after a few little events and golfers are out there, you ask them if you can have a big tourney and bring out the Pole holes. After the big event is over, just leave the course out there and don't say anything, Works everyitme. In about a year, you will have shammed them into buying a new course.

[ross]

To try to summarize from our 6-year odyssey in San Francisco, before you do anything, find out what the decision-making process is and who the ultimate decision-maker(s) are. Then find out who they listen to and what arguments/messages are persuasive to them. Get a hold of the master plan for the park (most have them) and see if/how you can fit disc golf into it. Other ideas:

-- Learn how the bureaucracy works
-- Always follow up when you say you are going to do something (such as sending someone in the city a proposal, or news clips, or contact numbers at other parks departments).
--Take advantage of the resources that are already out there -- the PDGA has a whole page (referred to in this post but I'll give the url once again: PDGA Course Development (http://www.pdga.com/cd_ncd-sfdgc.php)
-- Be "politely persistent" (i.e. be nice to people you are dealing with, but let them know you are determined to make this happen).
-- Get young people involved.
-- Work with others, golfers in particular but also find allies in the community. No one can do this alone, esp. if it's in city park.

Good luck!

[jackinkc]

Know the people on the P&R board who are the movers and shakers.

Know the people in the area that you are working on development, and get involved. It is best to find a local resident that has an active interest.

Get involved.

Jack

[par54whereareyo]

Use the "shotgun" approach. Contact as many people as you can, some of the ones that you think are interested in the course will not be & someone who you might think would have no interest could be the one that really pushes to get the course in.

[terrycalhoun]

The new, PDGA three-minute promotional video is intended for persuasion of sponsors, but it also makes a nice demo for folks who might want to help you put a course in. It's here: http://www.pdga.com/video/index.php - it's the one at the bottom. If you are using a Windows computer and you right-click on it, you can download the entire file to your laptop or desktop and then it'll be there for you whenever you want to show it to someone.

[LouMoreno]

My favorite part has to be the scene where someone (sorry, can't tell who it is.) is driving and the spectator says, "Daaamn." :D

He He. I noticed that as well and although I thought that it was sort of unprofessional to be in the video trying to promote disc golf I still thought it was funny as hell.

that guy right before the "**** guy. the guy sitting down with yellow shirt and tan hat is from toledo and is a local disc golfer here. some of us around here watched the video and were like wait a minute rewind. And sure enough right at minute 1.51 there is OSH.
http://chris132477.bizland.com/ottawa2/images/111_1197.JPG

http://chris132477.bizland.com/ottawa2/images/111_1197.JPG

[xterramatt]

This document can break down some of the expenses and installation info, along with a lot of good selling points for a disc golf course.

http://www.innovadiscs.com/downloads/course_ebook.pdf

It is about 5mb, but has a wealth of information, diagrams and photos.

Hey, what kind of organization is a disc golf club as it pertains to the 501 c form. I'm starting there even though my club is only two people strong. I've tried getting more members on this board, but at the moment it seems like I'm the only disc golfer in my area. the good thing is that I know our director of public works, so permission shouldn't be too hard, I just want to get tax exempt status so I can start fund raising. anyone can be a member, you don't have to be local. Theres not even a membership fee yet cuz I can't deposit the checks anywhere until I grind my way through the irs.

The closest section i can find is 501 (c) (7)- Social and Recreation Clubs.

Okay, you need form 1024, form 8718 (which is where you attach your $150) and an employer identification # which you can get over the phone. form 1024 is 25 pages with instructions, so I recommend doing it on the computer with adobe. I don't know how i'm supposed to write the $150 check, out of my account or out of an account opened in the clubs name, but I'll figure it out. Good luck to everyone making new courses. long live fee free disc golf courses!!! :cool: