Subject:  Meadow Creek fires general manager in hopes for increased usage & membership |
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Duplicate Dawg
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Date Posted: 08:45 10/27/09 Tue
(published in, Lowell Sun, 10-27-09)
Meadow Creek ousts manager
By Erin Smith
esmith@lowellsun.com
DRACUT -- Earlier this month, Meadow Creek Golf Club opened a new clubhouse. That same week, the board that oversees the club voted to oust the general manager.
The move is the latest twist at a public golf course that has gone through many changes since it opened three years ago.
"We're going forward with a different philosophy with club management," said Jeff Brem, general partner and president of the golf course.
Brem said timing of the board's decision to fire Kevin Shepple was a coincidence. Shepple had served as the general manager at the tournament-caliber, 18-hole golf course for the past two years, since Brem and the other new owners took over the course.
Shepple's last day on the job was Friday. He did not immediately return a call for comment.
Board members are hoping the new management company they've hired, Affinity Management, will increase club membership and use of the golf course, according to Brem, who says those figures have largely remained stagnant during the the past two years under Shepple's management.
Brem said Affinity was hired to manage the restaurant and banquet hall at the clubhouse and the golf course. Affinity, which is based in Charlottesville, Va., specializes in membership recruiting, marketing and club operations, according to the company's Web site.
Aaron Crear, who has been a member at the club for the past two years, said he doesn't understand why the board decided to fire Shepple.
"He definitely had the experience and was doing a good job," said Crear.
In a letter sent to club members last week, Brem acknowledged that not everyone would be happy with the decision.
"Some of you have become friends with Kevin, others have had close associations and for you this change will not be welcome. I know that many of you will be concerned and anxious," said Brem in the letter.
The club owners plan to hold meetings for members to explain the change in management this month, according to Brem.
Meadow Creek Golf Club is privately owned with club memberships, but the course and restaurant at the clubhouse are open to any paying member of the public.
Meadow Creek Golf Club, which is surrounded by 178 house lots, opened three years ago. More than 100 lots have been sold, and homes ranging in price from $550,000 to $1.5 million have been built or are under construction. When the golf course opened, an agreement was inked with the town to build a clubhouse on the property within 30 months or relinquish 27 house lots to the town.
The clubhouse, which opened Oct. 15, includes a golf shop, a 72-seat restaurant, and a banquet hall and cocktail reception area that serves more than 200 people. There's also a covered terrace outside with service and seating for 48 people. The 14,000-square-foot structure hosts locker-room space, a members-only lounge and administrative offices in the basement, and cost about $3.3 million to build, according to Brem.
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