Guest View-Diane Peters: "Golf Tourist" Revenue was Based on Speculation with No Supporting Data

Back in 2019, in order to not appear self-serving in their efforts to keep the town-owned golf courses open, residents living along the golf courses figured out that they needed to come up with an argument for why the golf courses were good for the entire town and not just good for their views and their property values.

The bed tax and sales tax argument
They argued that the golf courses benefited the entire town by attracting tourists who came here to play golf and that these “golf tourists” were contributing to the bed tax and sales tax. However, no one ever supplied any statistics on how much revenue these supposed golf tourists are bringing in or any proof that they bring in more in revenue than what it's costing us taxpayers to maintain these courses. As such, I asked the town manager if the town had any statistics to prove those claims. And it turns out, they did not.

My email to the Town Manager

“The argument of the golf crowd is that the golf courses bring in revenue in the form of bed tax from the hotels and sales taxes in our shops and restaurants. But where is the proof of how many people who stay at our hotels are playing golf on the El Con golf courses? Can the town show exactly how much bed tax and sales tax revenue we are receiving from people staying in our hotels who are here for the purpose of playing golf on the town-owned golf courses?”

The Town’s Response

“The Town cannot show exactly how much bed tax and sales tax revenue it is receiving from people staying in hotels within Town boundaries for the purpose of playing golf on Town-owned golf courses.”

As I suspected, the “tourist revenue” argument was purely conjecture and has no merit at all.

Opinions without factual evidence
One person who lives along the golf courses commented on social media that the golf courses were a “net add” to the town. But when I asked him to provide the “actual monetary statistics,” he could not. He responded only that: “They bring people [tourists] in. They are beautiful. The golf courses keep property values up.”

Well, one could argue that the desert landscape brings people [tourists] in, it’s beautiful, and it keeps property values up. But we’ve all seen how Oro Valley allows mass grading of the desert with no concern at all for its beauty or how it affects our property values.

Three reasons why I never believed the “golf tourist revenue” argument

1. When any of our friends or family have visited us in the past 18 years, not one of them inquired about golf courses in the area. They wanted to experience the desert and desert wildlife, red rock country, Wild West history, and Native American history. As such, they took day trips to Saguaro National Park, Tombstone, the White Stallion Ranch, San Xavier Mission, Tubac, and Nogales, Mexico. Others headed up to Sedona for a few days after leaving Oro Valley. Again, not one of them had any interest in playing golf.
2. When my husband and I moved here in 2003, we came for the desert and mountain views and the dry climate. Golf courses were not on our radar.
3. When planning a vacation that includes golf, why choose Oro Valley over Scottsdale when Scottsdale has a far greater selection of adjacent quality dining, boutique shopping, museums, and art galleries?

The “net add” just doesn’t add up. Their whole argument was based on hyperbole. Six years into this boondoggle, I still fail to see what’s in it for the rest of us.
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Diane Peters has lived in Oro Valley since 2003, moving here to escape the humidity of the East Coast. She’s been involved in OV politics and development issues since 2006, including organizing a citizens group in 2014 that spent 9 months negotiating a controversial 200-acre development project. In her past life, she worked in medical research at various University Hospitals in New England. Her interests include reading, writing, nature photography, travel, art galleries, museums, and politics.