The disc golf course at the 59-acre Heritage Park will close permanently on Jan. 1, 2025, according to Lynchburg’s Parks & Recreation Department.
All fixtures on the disc golf course, including the baskets, will be removed as part of “ongoing park updates and space repurposing efforts,” the department said in a news release Friday.
The disc golf course, at 557 Leesville Road, is a 9-hole course, with tight, wooded fairways and grass tee areas. Heritage Park is situated on land shared between the Parks & Recreation Department and Lynchburg City Schools.
“We understand this change may come as a disappointment to some in our community, but we remain committed to offering fantastic disc golf experiences,” Parks & Recreation said.
Susannah Smith, construction coordinator for Parks & Recreation, told The News & Advance that the disc golf course at Heritage Park had not received good reviews by golfers who have played the course.
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Also, as part of the department’s master plan for the park, residents were invited to fill out a survey. Focusing on the park’s nature paths and making trail improvements were rated much higher from survey respondents than upgrading the disc golf course, she said.
Lynchburg plans to donate all of the Heritage Park disc golf fixtures it removes that can be reused to Central Virginia Community College.
The city’s other public disc golf courses at Sandusky Park and Peaks View Park will remain open for year-round play, according to the department. Liberty University, University of Lynchburg and Randolph College also have disc golf courses on their campuses.
Smith said Parks & Recreation plans to look at building another disc golf course to replace the course at Heritage and possibly a fourth course since disc golf is so popular in the area.
Wyatt Woody, director of the city’s Parks & Recreation Department, is a strong supporter of disc golf, according to Smith. “He loves disc golf, so we are definitely going to be going forward with more disc golf courses,” she said.
Smith invited disc golfers in Lynchburg who have questions about the department’s plans to close the course at Heritage Park and its plans to design and build a replacement course to contact her at susannah.smith@lynchburgva.gov.
Mark Hand, 434-385-5556 mhand@newsadvance.com
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