Evening star., 1951-01-16
Recreation Unit
Called Confer
On Golf Contract
Wender Acts After
Seeing Officials of
Interior Department


day to discuss its position regard
ing the new public golf course
contract the Interior Department
Is offering S. G.. Leoff1er.
Harry S. Wender, board chair
man. called the special session
following another conference he
and other board members held
with Interior Department officials
late yesterday. Mr.. Wender said
he had invited Donald Lee, counsel
for the Interiors National Park
Service, to attend the meeting.
The Interior Department cur
rently is negotiating a new con-
tract with Mr.. Leoffler who has
operated the public golf courses
here for the department for the
last 26 years.
Zone Chance" Protested.
The proposed contract would
give Mr.. Leoff1er control of the
links for five. years. 1t does con-
tain a clause. however, which
would give the Recreation Board
chance to take over next jan
uary l if it can raise the necessary
cash by this November l. Other
wise, Mr.. Leoffler would keep the
courses under his management for
the additional four years.
The Recreation Board has OBJ
jected to this ''one chance" clause.
Mr.. Wender pointed out the In
terror Department had promised to
let the board take over operational
control the first of any year it got
the money.
The Recreation Board is par
ticipating in the negotiations be-
cause the Interior Department
also promised not to make changes
in the golf course setup without
consulting the board.
Members of the Recreation
Board also feel the proposed con-
tract provides terms which are too
favorable to Mr.. Leof11er.
Compromises Expected.
It is believed the Thursday
meeting will reveal some COM
promises have been made between
the Interior Department and the
Recreation Board on the terms of
the proposed contract.
The conference yesterday was
called after Representative Rivers,
Democrat, of South Carolina
wrote a letter to Interior Secre-
tary Chapman asking a delay in
any dealings with Mr.. Loeffler.
Mr.. Rivers said he was going to
fight to get the courses turned
over to the Recreation Board.
He also wrote a letter to Chair
man Bates of the District SUBJ
committee of the House Appro-
priations Committee, asking
support of an appropriation to
enable the local board to take
over the courses. Yesterday Presi-
dent Truman, in his budget which
he sent to Congress, recommended
that $275,000 be appropriated for
that purpose. Part of the money
would be used to buy Mr.. Leoff1ers
equipment and the rest to set up
an operating fund.
Investigated in 1949.
1t was Mr.. Rivers who caused
q congressional hearing on the
golf course situation in 1949 by
introducing a bill to force the
Interior Department to turn the
links over to the Recreation Board.
A House land subcommittee ap-
proved the bill, but the full COM
mittee never acted.
One result, however, was that
Mr.. Leoffler's usual five-year con-
tract was not renewed and the
Interior promised to make every
effort to turn the courses over to
the. Recreation Board. Last year
Mr.. Leoff1er operated it under a
one-year contract.
Also in the picture is the re-
quest of Mr.. Leoffler that green
fees be raised 10 cents on four of
the five courses. Mr.. Wender
feels an increase should not be
granted until auditors see if it is
justified on the basis of last years
receipts. The board is expected
to discuss this phase of the con-
troverSy on Thursday also.