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Published: Wednesday, Oct. 07, 2009 / Updated: Friday, Oct. 30, 2009 11:17 AM

Is an LPGA tournament worth it?

The recent announcement of the LPGA Tournament coming to Tega Cay Golf Course in October, 2010 seems like it might be more political than for real. Living right on the golf course, we know the Tega Cay courses and also the requirements of a major tournament, it's very hard to consider this being for real in our small town.

How much will it cost us taxpayers?

The Pines course has five road crossings and the Grande View has three crossings, so it is hard to imagine 30,000 to 50,000 people moving through our courses across these roads without blocking our streets for four days or more at tournament time. The crossways are narrow so we will have delays just trying to drive to and from work.

It's bad enough to have our primary road, Tega Cay Drive closed for two hours for the parade on July 4. We have a public safety issue.

What is our mayor thinking? Does he need this publicity for re-election?

The Pines course is narrow and has little room for spectators. I certainly would not want these crowds going into my backyard.

It appears that the LPGA could shut down half the city or more with walking traffic, golf carts, and automobile traffic. Does our mayor understand the tremendous pressure that he will be adding to the community volunteers, who already do half or more of our landscaping effort in the community? We can't get the city tidied up now for we residents.

Who is going to pay the expenses to make the city and course beautiful for the tournament? Taxpayers? And who is going to clean up the mess that all those spectators will be creating? Besides, Tega Cay has reached its bonding limit, plus there is a short fall in our budget, so where are we going to get the financial resources to support this LPGA tournament?

Do we residents really want this without the facts?

We need to take better care of our current athletic fields and grounds. There is a strong demand for more practice fields. We don't need major golf tournaments! Rather, we need to put our own house in order now! Mayor Runde has taken us from a $1 million dollar debt to almost $9 million in his eight years. It will require a large portion of our annual budget to pay the interest on this debt. We just had a demonstration of how costly this lack of fiscal responsibility is. Currently, we are replacing 18 greens at a cost of $269,000 plus a few other items being tossed in by the mayor to gain votes, such as a croquet court for $25,000. By the time we add it all up, we are over $400,000 going for another bond issue. That bond will cost $60 to $80,000 in fees and legal changes.

This is a very expensive way to go.

The economic gain raved about by the mayor will primarily be in Mecklenburg, which has the hotels and, therefore, will get the restaurant and tourist business, while Tega Cay will suffer the daily inconvenience and substantial expense of hosting the tournament.

Is it worth it?

It is becoming very evident to us that it's time for a change. We need a mayor who will listen to the people, who will respond to the needs of the people and not try to dictate and totally direct our community via some form of control.

We hope other residents will voice their concerns about these problems.

Speak up.

Phil and Joyce LaChapelle live on Alana Court in Tega Cay.