An Ohio couple with business ties to a small Columbus suburb has purchased the Westchester Golf Course for $1.7 million.
But new owner Bryan Wallake, who, with his wife, Tamie, closed on the deal on Nov. 30, said community support in Canal Winchester — just east of the Columbus airport — will be vital as they move forward with their plans for the property.
“I’m not like the previous owner who had extra money to throw at it if it doesn’t make money,” he said. “I need it to be successful.”
Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks were in contract to buy the course at 6300 Bent Grass Blvd. for $1.8 million earlier this year and planned to turn it into a park.
That didn’t sit well with neighbors — including the Wallakes — in the nearby Villages of Westchester, a development of about 900 homes whose owners had paid premium prices to live near the course.
In fact, the Wallakes had just built a home near the 16th green.
“I was ready to walk away from my house,” Bryan Wallake said. “A lot of people were concerned about their property values. We were hearing they could drop by 20 percent.”
