On Saturday, the Herald reported a director of the business, Wayne Bailey, said the facility would no longer operate.
“After two years of unsuccessfully looking for ways to make the running of the club financially viable, the Gulf Harbour Country Club will close with immediate effect,” he wrote in the letter posted on social media by one member last week.
“Unfortunately the club continues to lose money. It is appreciated that many of you have absorbed higher fees in recent times, however notwithstanding this, costs continue to outrun revenue,” Bailey said.
In addition to that, the club requires significant capital investment.
Locals who have signed the new petition say the course is far more than just a place to play golf but part of the community, vital open green space, and the reason why many bought their houses there.
The group said it was talking with Auckland Council on ensuring the land remained open space.
“Gulf Harbour Country Club is zoned by Auckland Council as open space sport and recreation” with a 999-year encumbrance that prevents development for housing and requires the land to be used as a golf course.
The encumbrance between the council and the club was put in place long before the current owner purchased it.
Hundreds of residents in Gulf Harbour relied on the encumbrance to provide protected open space when they purchased their properties, the group says, adding that it is opposed to any attempt to convert this open space to housing.
“We will petition Auckland Council to uphold the terms of the encumbrance on behalf of the Gulf Harbour and Whangaparāoa communities,” the group says.
Locals said they walk on the course and highly value the amenity it provides.
“Alongside not wanting to lose our open spaces, imagine the impact the extra volume of housing will have on the infrastructure at the end of the peninsula,” one local said.
In 2021, the Herald reported the sale of the property to an entity associated with Auckland developer Greg Olliver.
At the time, a spokesperson for the club said the property had just changed hands.
Companies Office records show Olliver was appointed a director and his company - The Phoenix Trust Limited - became the sole shareholder in the company registered as the owner of the club.
But also in 2021, the Companies Office issued a banning order on Olliver over his plans for a property in St Heliers that, in part, was at the centre of an epic divorce battle with ex-wife Sarah Sparks.
Olliver had to resign from dozens of companies in which he was a director.
Many of Olliver’s companies have seen the directorships transferred to Wayne Bailey, a Christchurch accountant. Bailey also stepped into Olliver’s directorship roles when the property developer went bankrupt in 2009. He did not respond to a request for comment.
The same Wayne Bailey announced the golf course’s sudden closure this month. He has not responded to requests for comment in the last week on the golf course closure and what might be planned for the land.
Local councillor John Watson said he understands why people are concerned and worried about the land’s future.
“This club was built 25 years ago and has been through different ownerships. It is a high-class golf course in terms of its layout, clubhouse and facilities. If this ownership hasn’t been able to make it work to a favourable end in terms of their investment, the community would hope a new buyer would come in and make it work,” Watson said on Saturday.
Anne Gibson has been the Herald’s property editor for 23 years, has won many awards, written books and covered property extensively here and overseas.
