South Jersey country club to become public golf course

A South Jersey Country Club is expected to reopen soon as a golf course. One elected official wonders about the future of the facility.

On Monday, a subsidiary of First Montgomery Group outbid the Union League of Philadelphia and Camden County to buy the Woodcrest Country Club for just over $10 million, about three and a half million more than the property’s appraised value.

Camden County Freeholder Jeff Nash says even though the owners have a website saying they will maintain the property as a public golf course for now, he’s concerned about the future.

“I am pleased that they intend to use it as a public course in the short term,” he said. “I would hope that they would follow the need of the community, and that is to preserve the entire property from development by keeping it as golf course or open space.”

Nash says if any development is proposed, the county will oppose major changes to the property: “There will be no development on this property. That is the want of the community, the county, and the municipality, and we intend to preserve it notwithstanding their purchase of the property.”

A website set up by the buyers says the course will reopen as the Village at Woodcrest.