Sandpoint needs a new 18-hole course

I just attended a Super Bowl party at a beautiful home on the golf course at what used to be Hidden Lakes. The owner has bought a home in Green Valley, Ariz., just south of Tucson. Having just moved here from Tucson with my business, I had to ask why.

The man and his wife are avid golfers but with the demise of Hidden Lakes and pricy Idaho Club initiation fees and dues, there is no 18-hole golf course in Sandpoint for them to play. Having traveled in all directions last summer to play "on the road" on all these little towns' beautiful tracts one has to wonder what happened to Sandpoint's.

I think many people considering moving here will think twice with the lack of full-sized public golf facilities. (The nine-hole Elks Club is nice. ) I think Bonner County or the city of Sandpoint should accquire land now before it's too costly and begin developement soon on a public course.

I wonder about the long-term effects on real estate without one. Maybe its a good thing to stunt the town's growth and cap any rise in real estate values.

BRUCE JOHNSON

Sandpoint