“I think this golf course, we don’t know the impact economically that it has on the town, but people come in, they play the course, they buy groceries, they fill up their car. It’s a good thing to have and I’d hate to see us without it…but we’re at the point financially, where we can’t make a go,” longtime local attorney John Shaeffer said, before the Flandreau City Council this past week.
An appointed member of the Golf Course Task Force in Flandreau, Shaeffer was standing at the podium that night with three others from the committee sitting behind him — Jason Ramsdell, Dick Emter, and Derek Burshiem. The three were giving Council members a final recommendation after months of discussions and assessments of the course’s future.
That recommendation is to give the golf course and surrounding farmland to the City.
“We have one of the nicest, prettiest golf courses in the whole state and I’d like to keep it. I think it’s a benefit for the city to consider taking it over,” said Shaeffer.
Jason Ramsdell, Golf Board President, told Council members that there is a current lien on the land with approximately $188,000 remaining, and loan details could be worked out with the lending facility in Elkton. The task force estimates the land would give the city an equity of at least $600,000 if it would need to sell in the future, or otherwise rent out.
River’s Bend Golf Course, a nine-hole course in Flandreau, is considered one of the more beautiful courses in the region. Fairways are lined with mature trees and the Big Sioux River winds its way through at several turns. But River’s Bend has had its share of challenges in recent years. Flooding forced the closure of the course in 2019, and an entire season was lost. (It did, however, reportedly bounce back to almost a record year the following summer.)
Aging and broken equipment have also created ongoing headaches for the few staff and volunteers the club has. Members have long been pushing for some sort of benefits for a golf pro or greenskeeper, because lack thereof has kept strong qualified applicants from considering the job.

The city, the Task Force determined, could far better provide those opportunities and still make money — at least for the next several years. After that, there is hope that the the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe, might build its own new course. Should that happen, the city could sell the land for a profit.
It could be a “win-win” for all, task force members told the Council.
There were questions, specifically in regard to the city’s financial exposure should it take this on.
City Administrator Cohl Turnquist estimated an $18,000-25,000 injection of funds would be needed almost immediately to make the course sustainable; those funds would be on top of the $25,000 the city already gives the course annually. The funds though would help to pay, Turnquist said, 2.5 people to run the course itself and 2 additional staff to run the clubhouse.
Mayor Dan Sutton, who helped to appoint members of the Golf Course Task Force, told those present, “I think it’s a quality of life issue.. an economic driver. If we’re going to keep a golf course in the community for all ages to enjoy, I believe it’s going to have to land in the city’s lap to do that.”
The Council didn’t disagree, however members voted that night to talk further about it at an open budget workshop this Wednesday night.
Also heard at the most recent meeting of the Flandreau City Council.
- On August 24th at 6:30, there will be a 2023 Budget workshop for Council members and Turnquist encouraged all council members to attend the next meeting as there will be a public hearing to vacate an alley located within the future fire station property site.
-A request for a street closure for the Flandreau Farmer’s Market Fall Festival. The Council approved the closure on South Crescent Street from Pipestone Avenue to 3rd Avenue between the hours of 4:00 - 8:00 p.m. on September 22. More on the plans being made for the upcoming celebration in a future issue of the Moody County Enterprise.
- An update on the new Fire Station that the Rural Development Association is requiring additional information to secure funding. Mayor Sutton explained that an additional document is needed for RDA to approve the design. Once signed, the RDA will have 30 days to approve or deny.