Two Ventura Courses to Be Renovated

Two municipal courses designed by noted architect, William F. Bell, will be getting remodeled. The layouts in Ventura, Calif., Olivas Park and Buenaventura, will receive $14 million in improvements over the next couple of years. In October 2002, the city hired Forrest Richardson of Phoenix to oversee the design work.

Opened in 1932, Buenaventura will receive mostly cosmetic work. The traditional layout will be maintained while receiving an overall sprucing up. Olivas Park, on the other hand, will undergo significant changes, including an expansion of its driving range and a re-laying out of some of its holes. Olivas Park has enough peripheral land for an additional nine holes. But a survey conducted by the city determined there’s not enough local demand for additional holes.

“With Buenaventura, our goal is to preserve the charm it has, but restore some dignity to it,” Richardson told Southern California Golf magazine. “With Olivas, it’s more of a change than what is there now. Olivas is an open canvas, which gives us the ability to change more.”

Work on Buenaventura, which will receive improvements for safety purposes as well as drainage and irrigation upgrades, will commence in fall 2003, and take 8-10 months to complete. Once Buenaventura is finished, construction will begin on Olivas Park. Built in 1969, that course will receive various design improvements as well as upgrades to its irrigation and drainage systems. The Olivas Park work will take 14-16 months.