Happy Friday! I am Chris Charnas, Vice President of Canal Shores, and this is your regular update on the progress of construction of the Canal Shores Golf Course. Things are moving quickly at Canal Shores. Under the expert supervision of Doug Myslinski, Matt Lohmann and Mario Salas from Wadsworth Golf Construction Company, we’re making great progress on the renovation of the 104 year old “gem in your backyard.” We continue to move from the north end across the Canal from the Bahai Temple south towards Central Street. Currently the course has eight holes open for play: 1, 2, 13, 14,15, 16, 17 and 18. Despite the reduced number of holes, golfers continue to come out!
We anticipate closing holes 1 and 2 next week and the remaining holes the week of August 21st. Wadsworth is estimating that the final seeding will be done around Halloween, which means we should be open for play by late summer 2024. That date is tbd and is entirely based on Chicago weather. The later we get a hard freeze the better. The sooner the ground warms up in the spring to grow the grass the sooner we can open up and start play.
Current progress report:
- Holes 5, 6, and 7: final shaping is underway. Fairways, tees and roughs are covered in topsoil. Waiting on sand for the greens. Special thanks to Chicagoland Turf who donated the pre-plant fertilizer, seed and grow-in nutrients for the putting greens. Irrigation should be in place next week. We are installing a brand new irrigation system with new controllers and a state of the art satellite control system. This will help keep the golf course in great condition going forward.
- Hole 4: preliminary shaping completed and detailed work under way. Drainage going in and dissipator, connection to the canal completed.
- Hole 8: Existing turf has been rototilled, trees and brush have been removed. Drainage dissipator in place.
- Holes 9 and 10: both have been rototilled, tree removal and brushing finished. Drainage dissipators are in. Working on expanding 9 teeing area and determining longterm plan for the Canal Shores Snack Shack.
- Holes 3, 11 and 12: rototilling is starting, dissipators are going in and tree removal is in progress.
We believe the three new holes on the north end will be among the most photographed golf holes in the area. Here is a dramatic “before and after” view of the north end construction:
Before renovation
Renovation in progress
Rendering of the north end holes
Please let me know if you have any questions on the project or would like a tour. If you prefer to be unsubscribed from this newsletter, please let me know.
Finally, a huge thank you to all that have donated to the Canal Shores 2nd Century project. If you have not yet donated and are interested, you can email me to set up a meeting or you can access our donation site here.
Regards,
Chris Charnas