The beloved Shalimar Golf Club closed its doors at the end of April, leaving residents uncertain about its future as a golf course and what opportunities will remain if the proposed housing development at the site receives city council approval.
However, the city’s two municipal golf courses do have some recent improvements for residents in north and south Tempe to take advantage of.
Shalimar Golf Club, a Tempe attraction for over 40 years at 2032 E. Golf Ave., closed its doors on April 30, after its owners began working with a developer to reimagine the space as a new housing development.
Over the last year, the Shalimar Association, a residential group that aims to protect the course, has been working to fight the rezoning of the golf course before the sale is finalized to protect the green space. Carl Streiff, president of the association, has been at the forefront of the Save Shalimar campaign – recruiting other residents, speaking with the owners and sharing their concerns with Tempe City Council.
After over 40 years, Shalimar Golf Club closed its doors at the end of April.
Courtesy Carl Streiff
Streiff says that the Shalimar community is understanding of the owners’ decision to sell the property, which was becoming increasingly expensive to maintain, according to local reports. But that doesn’t mean that the course’s neighbors are pleased with the potential new development.
“I think the No. 1 misconception, if there is on,e is that we are trying to block a sale, and we’re not,” Streiff said. “We’re absolutely OK with the owner selling the property, our issue has been and is rezoning.”
The proposed housing development seeks to rezone Shalimar into a much higher density to allow for the project’s scale, which, according to Streiff, would completely change the character of the neighborhood.
Shalimar Golf Course has been a community hub for Tempe residents – offering a place of gathering for golfers and non-golfers alike.
“We’ve had many events and a lot of favorable memories, and it’s somewhat of an anchor of this part of Tempe,” Streiff said.
He also believes that a new, high density housing development is not consistent with the existing neighborhood, suggesting that this kind of project would not be of benefit to the surrounding home values.
Other potential concerns with the rezoning include increased traffic, a loss of 44 acres of green space and a threat to the animals living around the course.
The Tempe Development Commission is expected to consider the project after the developer conducts neighborhood meetings about the project in June, and until then, Streiff and other Save Shalimar supporters will continue to push for the preservation of the golf course to hopefully bring about an alternate solution.
Unlike Tempe’s two public golf courses, Shalimar, a nine-hole course, is privately owned and operated. Streiff says that neighbors don’t expect the city to come in and take over, but he thinks that there’s an opportunity for a business to step in and bring new life to the club.
Shalimar has a longstanding clientele base for a smaller course, and its other amenities like its restaurant and bar attract non-golfers. Streiff says an additional event venue on site would be a major draw to bring in and retain the club’s patrons.
Residents are concerned about how the closing of Shalimar Golf Club and potential rezoning could negatively impact the area.
Courtesy Carl Streiff
“It could be a real boom as far as business,” he said. “You also have a built-in clientele – a large one – that are very much used to going to Shalimar to eat, to golf, to drink, to hang out, and we want to see that brought back to life as Shalimar 2.0.”
What’s left of Tempe golf
It seems that Shalimar’s next steps are still uncertain as the rezoning of the course remains up in the air, but that doesn’t mean the Tempe community has no remaining golf opportunities for residents and visitors.
Tempe has two public-private golf courses: Grass Clippings Rolling Hills and the Ken McDonald golf courses, which both have and are expected to have major improvements to “ensure the long-term viability of public golf,” according to the city’s website. Tempe City Council began negotiating with two firms in 2022 to take on a land lease and capital improvements at the two courses, transferring operational duties to these partners while still retaining ownership.
Grass Clippings took on the Rolling Hills Golf Course, and CourseCo entered into a lease agreement for the Ken McDonald Golf Course. The former has since reopened the course with many improvements, such as new lighting and dining, while the latter is still in the design phase.
With the Ken McDonald Golf Course, 800 E. Divot Drive, the city and CourseCo are creating an improved clubhouse that will have a larger interior footprint, indoor and outdoor space, increased parking and a below-ground cart barn.
Alex Jovanovic, deputy community services director, said that the earliest construction could start is July based on the project’s funding, but he estimated that it will likely start in fiscal year 2026.
Work still needs to be done in the conceptual design process, conducting public outreach and beginning to work with an architect to guide them.
“They’re looking at things like cost estimating and those kinds of things just to see what can actually be done within the budget that’s allocated,” Jovanovic said.
Once those have been finalized, work can begin on bringing the city and CourseCo’s vision of the new Ken McDonald Golf Course to life.
Jovanovic said that people oftentimes view golf as an extra amenity and not as important, but Tempe sees it as a part of quality of life — a major priority for the city. A part of that quality of life includes this facility, and being a municipal golf course means that Tempe has a responsibility to maintain it.
The 50-year-old clubhouse has some features that have reached their life expectancies, and it’s necessary for the city to now improve upon them.
The Ken McDonald Golf Course will be conducting renovations of its clubhouse soon.
Courtesy City of Tempe
Tempe wants to not only provide a space for its residents to enjoy, but hopefully, these changes can bring in other people from around the Valley to play some golf or just to gather with the community.
“We’d like people to experience the golf course outside of golf, just traditional recreational opportunities, special events,” Jovanovic said. “So having additional parking there, revamping or renovating the clubhouse, allows for those opportunities.”
Please send your comments to AzOpinions@iniusa.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our Civility Guidelines. Reporter Caroline Yu can be reached at cyu@iniusa.org.
Meet Caroline Caroline Yu joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2020 as a summer intern covering Scottsdale. As an intern, she continued her coverage of Scottsdale, Paradise Valley and Tempe. After graduating in 2022, Caroline became a full-time reporter for Scottsdale and Paradise Valley. She is currently reporting for the Tempe market.
Community: She is a supporter of the environment and tries to get involved with related community events.
Education: Arizona State University with a BA in Journalism and Mass Communications, with a minor in French.
Random Fact: She used to be a ballet dancer for 10 years.
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“We’ve had many events and a lot of favorable memories, and it’s somewhat of an anchor of this part of Tempe,” Streiff said.
Alex Jovanovic, deputy community services director, said that the earliest construction could start is July based on the project’s funding, but he estimated that it will likely start in fiscal year 2026.
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