Designs released for new Elmwood clubhouse

If the vision comes together, you might decide to meet for a beverage or even a meal at the new Elmwood Golf Course clubhouse.

“We see it as more than just a clubhouse,” said Mike Patten, park development specialist for the city of Sioux Falls. “It’s going to become a destination for weddings and support for activities at the Premier Center. It can be a restaurant, a bar, so it’ll become more than a clubhouse.”

The current clubhouse is nearly 60 years old and is the only one in the region that hasn’t been renovated.

A fire in 2019 destroyed the cart storage building, leaving the current fleet of carts unprotected. The new clubhouse is designed to transform Elmwood into a full-service model, featuring modernized lounge and dining amenities, a full-service kitchen and enlarged banquet spaces.

Landscapes Golf Management, which runs city courses, will manage the clubhouse.

“It will be an expanded menu from what we do at Elmwood and what we offer at Prairie Green,” park development specialist Tory Miedema said. “And on top of it, we’ll be pulling over the (South Dakota) Golf Hall of Fame, and that will be at the main entrance to the clubhouse.”

The city also is partnering with First Tee of South Dakota to add on to the new cart storage building to give that organization a more permanent location.

Concepts show space for a classroom and practice areas.

The improvements are the final steps in upgrading Elmwood. The 32-hole golf course has been renovated, and “what we’ve heard from the golfing community, besides having a place we can host these big tournaments, is how is it going to flow and how can we improve circulation,” Miedema said.

The existing clubhouse will stay open while the new one is being built.

The plan is to start construction in the spring, move in toward the end of 2024 and be fully operational for the 2025 golf season.