FP Golf Design Team

A renowned golf course design firm out of Florida is the presumptive choice for design and construction management of the Ferry Point Golf Course, allaying concerns of those who live near the site that were worried about when progress would be made.

The city has entered into negotiations with Sanford Golf Design on a contract for the development of a Jack Nicklaus signature golf course in the park.

“The selection of Sanford Golf Design for negotiations to turn a former landfill into a world class golf course is encouraging progress for Ferry Point Park,” Mayor Michael Bloomberg stated. “The city is another step closer to hiring a team that will design and construct the course on top of the foundation already in place, eventually creating another world class amenity for New Yorkers to visit and enjoy.” 

In November 2006, the Parks Department canceled its contract with the golf course’s original developer, Ferry Point Park Partners, because it could not complete the project within the agreed upon budget or time frame.

After Ferry Point Park Partners pulled out of the 222-arce project, Bloomberg stepped in during January 2008 and announced that the city would complete the project. That month, the Request for Proposal went out.

Sanford Golf Design is still in the process of negotiating the contract, but it appears the deal will be sealed shortly.

“We have definitely been selected by the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation for the Ferry Point Park golf course,” said Samantha Noble of Sanford Golf Design, “but at this point in time, no formal contract has been signed.”

Councilman Jimmy Vacca, who remembers when the golf course was  proposed at the site 30 years ago, welcomed the news.

“We congratulate the mayor in keeping his commitment to the course,” Vacca stated. “The issue never was who would construct the golf course, but having a first class course in the park.  I think this is really it.”

Vacca said that despite his excitement, he still wants a definite timetable as to when the course will be completed, and plans on monitoring the situation closely.

The Friends of Ferry Point Park are thrilled that this particular designer was chosen.

“I am happy about the fact that Sanford Golf Designers have a lot of experience, and it will be a plus for the finished course,” said Dorothea Poggi, of the Friends of Ferry Point Park.

The construction of the golf course would be an important esthetic enhancement to many new and first-time homeowners who purchased homes in the area in anticipation of the course’s construction.

“Sanford Golf Design has 22-years of experience, and develops environmentally friendly golf courses,” Poggi stated. “My opinion is that Mayor Bloomberg has chosen a very competent, experienced company to design this course.”

Poggi said that her research shows that Sanford Golf Design has experience with a very similar site in Massachusetts that was the site of a former operating garbage landfill.

The site where the golf course will be located, in Ferry Point Park, was an official New York City garbage dump closed in 1963.

Ferry Point Golf Course, Sanford Golf Design, Jack Nicklaus, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Parks Department Ferry Point Park Partners, Friends of Ferry Point Park, Councilman Jimmy Vacca