Juniper Hill golf rates likely to rise; aquatic center to remain unchanged

Shooting to keep Juniper Hill Golf Course on par with its counterparts in surrounding communities, the cost to play tee it up for a round is likely to rise in 2026.

Passing along the fees, which were unanimously recommended and fully vetted by the Parks Advisory Board, Frankfort Parks, Recreation & Historic Sites Director Shawn Pickens detailed the rate hikes at Monday’s Board of Commissioners work session.

The proposed weekday greens fees for 18 holes and nine holes with a cart will rise $2 to $40 and $27, respectively. The weekday military and senior rates will also go up $2 to $35 for 18 holes with a cart and $25 for nine holes with a cart.

Pickens explained that the maintenance and upkeep costs for the golf carts continue to climb.

“We were able last year to get half of the fleet replaced, so we’re hoping in the very near future to get the other half of the fleet replaced as soon as we can,” he remarked.

On the weekends, players who choose carts can expect to pay $4 more per round in greens fees — $45 for 18 holes and $32 for nine. Golfers eligible for the military and senior rates will pay $40 for 18 holes with a cart and $30 for nine holes with a cart.

Weekday greens fees for walkers will remain the same as last season at $23 for 18 holes and $17 for nine holes. Military and senior weekday greens fees for walkers will also stay steady at $21 for 18 holes and $15 for nine holes.

Weekend greens fees for walkers will continue to be $26 for 18 holes and $20 for nine holes, with seniors and military rates of $24 and $18, respectively.

Pickens pointed to a 2024 price comparison of golf courses in our general vicinity, and 18 holes with a cart on weekdays ranged from $58.95 (at Cherry Blossom in Georgetown) to $35 (at Canewood in Georgetown), and weekend greens fees and a cart running from $64.95 to $42. Comparatively, Juniper Hill Golf Course’s 2024 rates were $33 on weekdays and $36.60 on weekends. Last season, rates rose to $38 on weekdays and $41 on weekends.

“You can see in the past two or three years, we’ve made some price increases, and we were pretty low on the list. Now, we’re getting up there into that ‘middle of the road’ so we’re not the most expensive but we’re also not the least,” Pickens explained. “We still have some upgrades we want to make and need to make on the course.”

An across-the-board $50 increase is recommended for golf course season passes. Individuals would pay $725; seniors (ages 60 and older) $635; and spouses, college students (ages 25 and younger), and active city employees $525.

An additional $50 hike in cart leases would mean individuals would pay $950 and spouses $425.

The proposed total cost for an individual season pass and cart lease is $1,675; seniors would pay $1,435; spouses $950; and college students and city employees can expect a cost of $1,475.

“That’s unlimited golf during the year, and if they wanted to add the cart lease, that’s how much additional it is,” Pickens noted.

A comparison of area golf courses’ season passes and cart lease fees shows that Cherry Blossom was the most expensive at $3,119.40; followed by Eagle Creek in Oldham County and Longview in Georgetown at $1,900; Weissinger in Shelbyville at $1,875; and Canewood at $1,850. Juniper Hill’s proposed 2026 rate is $1,675.

“We’re incrementally increasing prices to get us more in line with the surrounding communities, but also to try to increase our revenues. Our golf receipts are up some for this year, so we’re heading in the right direction,” he added.

According to Pickens, golf course expenses are $900,000 annually, and roughly 20,000 to 25,000 rounds of golf are played at Juniper Hill each year. Another expense it may need to incur in the future will be a new irrigation system, which averages between $1.5 and $2 million for an 18-hole course.

“The one that’s there currently is from 1957. It’s the original one put in when the course was built.”

Aquatic center rates

There are no proposed changes in the cost of daily admission or season passes at the aquatic center next summer and all Frankfort and Franklin County residents will continue to receive a price break. Daily admission for three- to 10-year-olds is $8 or $7 for local residents and 11 and older is $10 or $8 for local residents. The twilight rate (after 4 p.m.) is $6 and the group rate (20 to 75 people) is $6 or $5 for local residents. Children up to age two are admitted free.

“We made a significant increase last year at the aquatic center … and we just kind of want to let things ride right now,” Pickens stated. “We’re on the higher end for admission fees for aquatic centers in the area — Versailles, Georgetown — so we feel like we’re in a good spot.”

Season passes will continue to be $100 for Frankfort and Franklin County adults and $150 for adult non-residents. Local youth passes (ages three to 17) are $75 and youth non-residents is $100.

The city raised season pass rates last year and sold more than the year before.

One new addition is the morning program pass, which allows passholders to participate in lap swim, water aerobics, and other activities before the pool opens to the public.

“We got some feedback that they wanted a pass to just come in and do the aerobics, so we’re recommending $60 for that,” he noted.

For those who aren’t interested in a season pass for morning programming, single-day water aerobics/lap swim admission is $3 and remains unchanged from last summer.

Swim lessons will remain $75 for a one-week session, and private lessons are $30 for a 30-minute session or three lessons for $82.50 or six lessons for $150.

Private rentals of the pool from 7 to 9 p.m. are also the same as last season — $750 for local residents and $1,000 for non-local residents.

“We did make a significant increase in private rentals last year. I think we were in the $550 to $600 range, and we went up to $1,000. We were still sold out by March. So moving up to $1,000 did not affect — at all — our private rentals,” Pickens said, adding that private rentals are expensive to run because they require a full staff.

Mayor Layne Wilkerson asked how many nights private rentals are offered per season, and Pickens responded with about 30.

“If there’s that much demand for it, I don’t know why we wouldn’t increase it except that we don’t want to be greedy on this. But we have to charge what it’s worth,” the mayor stated. “Just going to $1,250, we’re talking an increase of over $10,000 in revenue.”

Wilkerson also asked why Frankfort and Franklin County residents get a price break at the pool but not on the links. Pickens explained that a lot of the play on the golf course is out-of-towners and it helps drive tourism, whereas the aquatic center’s population is approximately 90 to 95% local.

The parks director also confirmed that public night swims, which were added to the aquatic center calendar last season, will return in 2026.

Tennis and pickleball

The parks advisory board recommended a $5 increase for tennis programming. Youth quick start tennis is $25, while beginner, intermediate, and advanced fun doubles are $40.

Pickens attributed the minor hike to added expenses for balls, equipment, and payroll for instructors.

On the other hand, rookie pickleball will go from free to $10.

“The main reason for that, if you’re curious, is that we have a lot of people sign up and then not show up. We had vacancies where we could have signed people up, so we’re thinking a little bit of a charge will make them more inclined to come,” he explained.

Intermediate, high intermediate, and advanced pickleball will remain $40.

Athletic field rentals, shelters and pavilions

The only proposed hike for athletic field rentals is a $5 jump in practice fees per field per day to $15. Field rentals for games and tournaments will remain $150 per field each day.

After a slight increase in shelter and pavilion rentals in 2025, the city will keep the same rates of $80 for Jack Williams; $65 for both East Frankfort Park shelters and Dolly Graham, and $55 for Juniper Hill lower pavilion and Fort Hill.

“This is pretty industry standard and right in line with all the parks in our surrounding areas,” Pickens said.

The proposed fee schedule will be on the agenda for the November voting meeting, which is slated for 5 p.m. Monday, Nov. 24 at City Hall.