Yorba Linda: Black Gold Golf Course, developer fees, fitness centers are top news items this week

Three reports summarizing financial matters for the most recently completed fiscal year – one at the city-owned Black Gold Golf Club and two on fees paid by developers for impacts on the city's infrastructure – have been reviewed by the Yorba Linda City Council.

And the council-appointed Planning Commission has approved three conditional use permits for fitness centers, adding to the city's healthy supply of businesses catering to residents who seek to fulfill New Year resolutions by getting into and staying in better physical shape.

Net income at Black Gold for the 2018 fiscal year was $487,000, after $132,000 was spent on improvements, on revenues of $5.8 million. Revenue totals were less than projected when the budget was adopted by $252,000 but more than the prior year by $46,000 (numbers rounded).

Total expenses were $382,000 lower than expected, mostly due to payroll savings, according to the report from Mike Kudron, the city's parks and recreation director. Green fees brought in $3 million, better than projected by $128,000 and exceeding the prior year by $223,000.

Golf shop income was 89 percent of projections and 86 percent of the previous year, while income from the catering operation was $210,000, 23 percent better than last year and 33 percent higher than the year before.

Overall, the club hosted 123,000 visitors for the year, a figure that included 49,000 golf rounds.

Projects planned for this year include renovating 7,000 square feet of green-side bunkers and re-branding Center Catering with a new name and marketing materials. Challenges: minimum wage increases and the ability to hire maintenance and food and beverage employees.

Noted a separate consultant's report: “Golf course conditions and playability continues to improve every year as kikuyugrass becomes more fully established on the fairways and rough. Ongoing programs should focus on tee leveling, bunker renovation and future upgrading of the irrigation system.”

One of the two impact fee reports notes developers paid $354,000 into a fund for storm drain system improvements that now totals $7 million after earning $94,000 in interest. Developers pay $14,000 per acre to the fund, which had no expenditures for the year.

The other impact fee report notes developers paid $261,000 into a fund for transportation in-frastructure improvements that now totals $1.2 million after earning $14,000 in interest. A key expense was $101,000 for traffic signal modification.

Newly permitted fitness centers are Fitness Success, a 2,960-square-foot facility in the Court-yard Shopping Center on Valley View Avenue, and Club Pilates, a 1,500-square-foot facility in Town Center.

Also newly permitted is Crossfit Inversion, a 4,411-square-foot facility in a light industrial zone on La Palma Avenue. The business has been operating for a year, replacing Canyon Crossfit, but a permit had not been obtained by the old or new owners.