[date]
Dear Councilmember (Mayor) __________________ :
I am writing this letter to respectfully request your attention to the fact
that the Torrey Pines Men's Golf Club (TPMGC) has not yet received its Special
Use Permit for calendar year 2000. This non-action is unprecedented in the
40+ years of the TPMGC's existence. Please instruct City staff to issue this
Permit.
I have lived in San Diego for ____ years and have been a member of the TPMGC
for _____ years. The TPMGC is a club open to all residents of age in San Diego
County, and currently has over 1250 members. We are the second largest such
organization in Southern California and have been in existence since the course
was built more than 40 years ago.
The purpose of the TPMGC is to provide an open, organized structure in which
the citizens of San Diego can participate in affordable tournament level golf.
In addition, the members contribute a significant amount of their personal time
each year to the Buick Invitational and various local junior golf programs, as
well as donate money through the TPMGC for golf course improvements at Torrey
Pines. Our club is, and always has been, a significant participant and
contributor to the San Diego public golfing community.
All local golfers have experienced the shrinking number of tee times
available at Torrey Pines. I believe a major contributor to this community
problem is the growing number of times granted visitors to San Diego. One of
the reasons I am a member at Torrey Pines is that through the club I am able to
occasionally participate (not as often as I would like) in organized golf
tournament play. TPMGC provides me resident access to the golf courses I would
not otherwise have. I understand the importance of allowing a minor portion of
Torrey Pines tee times be reserved for visitor use. However, please remember
that Torrey Pines is a municipal golf course whose primary source of financial
support since inception has been the greens fees charged the resident golfers
of San Diego. Now that golf at Torrey Pines has become so immensely popular,
it is patently unfair to adopt any policies or procedures which would further
erode the residents' access to these fine municipal golf courses.
In closing, I would like to strongly request you consider granting more tee
times at Torrey Pines to the TPMGC. Our club's members truly are the golfing
residents of San Diego and, as proven by our significant membership base, we
are a valuable resource in this regard to the citizens of San Diego. As
questions arise before the Council concerning access to our golf courses,
protection of the residents' access to the "too few" municipal golf courses in
San Diego should always be the Council's primary objective and placed
significantly ahead of the desires or demands of any non-public special
interest group.
Thank you for your consideration of these matters.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Your Address]
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