Modesto Council Watch

The Modesto City Council on Tuesday:

▪ Approved an agreement with the nonprofit Modesto Improvement Partnership to have it operate and manage the Downtown Modesto Community Benefit District and carry out its management plan. The council formed the district in September, which will be funded through assessments paid by property owners in the district. The assessments will pay for services to make downtown cleaner, safer and more attractive. The city is advancing the nonprofit about $154,000 to cover its January through March expenses and before it receives the assessments.

▪ Wrote off $438,634 in bad debt. A city report states $314,717 of that is for what FM Golf owed the city for when it managed the Creekside and Dryden Park golf courses. The city ended its contract with FM Golf in October 2013. The rest of the bad debt is $123,917 Ernst & Associates Auctioneers owed Modesto for selling surplus city property in 2012 and not remitting the money to the city. FM Golf and Ernst & Associates filed for bankruptcy protection and don’t have assets to pay what they owe the city.

▪ Approved an agreement with ValleyCrest Golf Maintenance, which is partnering with KemperSports Management, for course management and maintenance at an annual cost of as much as $2.4 million. The agreement is for two years with three one-year extensions. ValleyCrest maintains the city’s three golf courses – 18-hole Creekside and Dryden Park and nine-hole Modesto Municipal – and Creekside operates the two 18-hole courses.

▪ Approved an agreement with the Del Rio CC Foundation to manage the Modesto Municipal Golf Course. The agreement is for two years with three one-year extensions. The foundation operates The First Tee of Central Valley – which helps young people build character through golf – at the course. While the city keeps the greens fees, the foundation keeps revenues from the clubhouse, cart rentals and driving range.

This story was originally published December 17, 2015 at 6:25 PM with the headline "Modesto Council Watch."