For the municipal course supporters, it was a message worth repeating.
"Save Pine Valley," cried a crowd of at least 200 people who gathered at the golf course Wednesday evening. The group was looking to send a strong signal that they weren't going to take lightly any sale of the golf course lands, scored by Joni Mitchell's Big Yellow Taxi.
Mayor Shari Green and seven councillors turned up to the event (Dave Wilbur was out of town), organized by Friends of Pine Valley - a collection of user group representatives.Attendees, some donning white "Save Pine Valley Golf Course" T-shirts which were on sale for $15, clapped and cheered throughout group spokesperson Don Chamberlain's presentation, liberally striking up chants in support of preserving the course.
Among them was 93-year-old Frank Kerbrat, who has played at Pine Valley for more than 30 years.
Kerbrat said he golfs at the course roughly three times per week, "providing the sun is shining." The course is the right size for the golf enthusiast, who walked the par 3 facility up until switching to a power cart two seasons ago. "I hope they do keep this place," he said.
Also supporting the course were Drew and Bonnie Anderson, whose son Blair got his start at Pine Valley at the age of seven with his grandfather. He continued to develop his skills at the course over the summers when he was nine and 10, playing almost every day - usually twice - before moving on to the golf and curling club facility.
Blair, now 22, recently graduated from Minot State University in North Dakota, which he attended on a golf scholarship.
"We came here today because he may have never have gotten to where he is without this course," said Drew. "[Pine Valley] opened doors for him."
Chamberlain highlighted a lapse in public consultation since council began considering selling Pine Valley land after being identified as an opportunity in the core services review final report.
"This lack of consultation is particularly alarming when you realize they are considering selling property that has been identified in the city's official community plan as parkland," he said.
Losing out on parkland prompted Al Cameron to attend the rally with a sign proclaiming green space and parkland were irreplaceable and "not for sale."
"I made this because 50 years down the road, people would be grateful we kept this as green space, whether it's viable as a golf course or not," he said.
Chamberlain also pointed to a city bylaw that states that money received by the municipality from the sale of park land has to go into a reserve fund for acquiring more park land.
"The city's master plan indicates that we already have a shortage of parkland compared to other cities of our size and population," Chamberlain said. "Pine Valley is zoned P1, park land - so what is motivating council's rush to sell this property?"
A public discussion on the future of the course is expected to take place at a city council meeting next month.
