Balt Ramos, general manager of the L.E. Ramey golf course, has submitted his 90-day notice of resignation to Kleberg County Judge Pete De La Garza as a way of bringing attention to the county, city, and Texas A&M University-Kingsville to find a way to keep the suffering golf course afloat.

Ramos spoke at the last Kingsville City Commission meeting and said if the three entities are willing to help him stay in business, hopefully they could work out a deal that will allow him to stay on as general manager.

“I have been owner/ operator of golf courses since 1993 with an emphasis in public golf and have never seen the economic conditions as they are now,” Ramos said. “The National Golf Foundation and PGA America just found that rounds of golf throughout the country are down 40 percent so it’s not just here, it’s hitting everybody.”

Ramos signed a contract in 2008 with Kleberg County to operate the golf course, he said 2009 was a decent year with around $450,000 in revenue, but 2010 has in no way been comparable.

“This year, January through June, revenues are down $108,000 compared to the same time in 2009,” he said.

He told the commission that he saw this coming and decided in March to meet with both De La Garza and Mayor Sam Fugate as a way to create ideas in order to move forward.

Upon their suggestions, he also met with every city commissioner, with the exception of Charlie Wilson, and every county commissioner.

“Because I have dealt with public facilities my whole life, I understand where you all sit and the tough decisions you have to make,” Ramos said to the city commission.

Ramos said everything boils down to two simple questions; does this community want a golf course and is it important to the community?

“From where I sit as a member of the PGA of America, our charge is to grow the game of golf. We think it instills certain values that are important to the community, such as integrity, hard work, and trustworthiness,” he said. “Those are the types of things we try to teach the youth; I’ve probably given over 80 lessons since I’ve been here and I’ve seen that the community really utilizes this golf course.”

Ramos gave some examples to the city commissioners as to just how tied into the community the golf course has been, such as the naval base, which just had a tournament; TAMUK, which just established a women’s golf team and holds two major events a year; Winter Texans, who swarm the facility right around Thanksgiving time; and many local charities, which raise money through tournaments.

“I think these things enhance the community and the quality of life for the citizens,” he said. “The easiest thing for me to do is to pack my bags, leave the community and say, ‘well, hey, I gave it a shot’ but I have a passion for what I do and I would like to see this golf course continue.”

Ramos mentioned that he has proposed to the county that it build an RV park on the unused land of the golf course, which he thinks would drive additional rounds of golf and boost tourism.

“I went to the county and told them that I understand what it takes to run a golf course, but my proposal allows for my company to stay in place and for the county not have to take on the 14 employees that they would have to hire if they wanted to run it themselves,” Ramos said.

He also reiterated his proposal that he presented in April for the city to enter into an interlocal agreement with the county, which would acquire $25,000 from each entity to keep the golf course in business.

“I know that $25,000 in this economy from a public entity is a lot of money, but it’s the least amount of money I can ask for and still keep things going,” Ramos said.

The Kleberg County Commissioner’s Court has already awarded Ramos $25,000 and has put limitations into place as to how it may be spent, such as utilities, fertilizers, and maintenance issues.

Ramos said he was also seeking support from TAMUK as well.

“The university told me the first day I came here that they wanted to do a professional golf management program, and I think that would be wonderful, especially since they have a golf team now that could embrace the golf course as their laboratory. So they should put a little bit of money into it,” he said. “Ultimately I think if the community leaders could pull together, then this facility could be saved.”

Fugate mentioned that he thinks all three entities, the city, county, and TAMUK, need to get together and “iron out” what can be done. The mayor said that plans to meet will be made in the near future.