On January 29, the Chapel Hill Town Council approved a special use permit for the development of a new training facility for the UNC men’s and women’s golf teams. The facility will be constructed at Finley Golf Club, located at 500 Finley Golf Course Road in Chapel Hill. Finley Golf Club recently underwent a multimillion-dollar renovation and reopened the public in October of 2023.

According to the McAdams architecture firm’s project narrative submitted to the Town of Chapel Hill, the project will only disturb three acres of the 257-acre parcel of land which contains the golf club. The two-story, 13,000-square-foot team facility will include a parking lot, drop-off area and new access road from the existing clubhouse. In his presentation at the evidentiary hearing hosted by the council, UNC senior associate athletic director Rick Steinbacher noted the new building will also include upgraded locker rooms, lounges, offices, meeting spaces and study areas. The building will also include a publicly accessible lobby area featuring historical memorabilia from both teams, according to Steinbacher.

This map shows the overview of the proposed new team and training facility for the UNC golf programs at Finley Golf Club in Chapel Hill. The new team building is on the right side of the map. (Image via Town of Chapel Hill)

“I do think it’s really, really clear that this project will significantly enhance the contiguous property,” Steinbacher said. “And we think it will be a wonderful amenity added for the public.”

The recent Finley Golf Club renovations have already alleviated some problems which arose between the UNC golf programs and recreational golfers sharing the course. For example, McAdams noted a safety issue: the driving ranges used by UNC golfers and recreational golfers faced each other. A private driving range was constructed for the UNC teams during the renovation.

According to Kody Trowbridge, an engineer at McAdams, the access road to the new team facility will follow an existing golf cart path. It will be the second team building located on the golf course; the older building is located toward the southeastern end of the course.

“The current facility, it’s just not big enough,” said Steinbacher. “It’s nowhere near the size… of most varsity training programs. So it could be a wonderful golf training facility for the community, but it no longer meets the needs of the programs.”

The vote from Chapel Hill council members to approve the special use permit was unanimous.

 

Featured image via LS3P/McAdams/UNC.

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