Popularity contest: Love for disc golf ‘gem’ poses challenges
May 8, 2021 | By Sidney Bewlay
A group of disc golfers enjoy the popular Waterbury Center course. Photo by Gordon Miller
Excitement for summer recreation is building in Waterbury and as the weather gets warmer, Hope Davey Park grows in popularity. One popular attraction at the field: the town disc golf course.
The course itself is known in disc golf circles as “Center Chains,” a name its somewhat organized user group calls itself, too. It’s located within the municipal park and a group of very dedicated volunteers has been helping maintain the course for 20 years. They work to preserve the path of the course, tee boxes, and the baskets used in playing the game. These passionate golfers do not work for the town of Waterbury or profit from this. However, especially with the popularity of outdoor recreation during the COVID-19 pandemic, this popular asset of the park has had unprecedented use.
Disc golfers head out along the course at Hope Davey Park. Photo by Gordon Miller
Many golfers use UDisc, a smartphone app that logs mobile scorecards, serves as a course locator, and tracks personal statistics as well as course statistics. Avid player and volunteer Clayton Davis recently asked UDisc to pull statistics on the course’s use and he was surprised with what he learned.
In 2017, the course had 619 rounds of golf logged. In 2020, the app recorded 5,295 rounds. UDisc notes that typically, only 1/5th of players actually log their data into the app. By that measure, the 2020 activity estimate would be more like 26,475 rounds.
“Even if these numbers are a rough estimate, that is a lot of usage and shows you how much people love this beautiful place,” Davis said. That much love for the course presents new challenges in a multi-use park.
A park for many uses and users
Located with access along Maple Street and Loomis Hill Road, the 28-acre Hope Davey Park accommodates a wide range of activities. Its covered pavilion and barbecue grills make it a perfect spot for cookouts and gatherings. The playground is popular with youngsters. The soccer fields are swarmed by the town’s youngest players in the fall; little league dominates in spring; the skatepark is a magnet for skateboard riders of all ages. The disc golf course spreads out on hilly terrain behind the open fields with paths meandering through trees and low brush that attract not only disc golfers, but walkers, runners, bikers, and even horseback riders.
Over the years, conflicts of use have arisen between some users of the disc golf course, users of the park, and residents along the park’s borders. After heavy use last year with the public turning to outdoor recreation during the pandemic, complaints grew once again.
Getting on the Select Board’s radar
By November, the town Recreation Department was hearing about litter, alcohol consumption, visible public urination, increased noise, dogs off leash. Recently, concerns have popped up about people using the course when it is marked closed for mud season to prevent trail damage.
The Hope Davey Center Chains course meanders through open glades and wooded hills. Photo by Gordon Miller.
At the Nov. 16 Waterbury Select Board meeting, Tom Scribner who lives adjacent the park spoke during public comment, asking town officials to turn some attention to the strain on park use and the need for better guidelines for shared use.
“Thanks to town officials and the rec department, outdoor resources in town have exploded in use in the year of COVID-19. We are all faced with the challenge of finding safe space to ride out the pandemic,” Scribner told the board. “I’d like to discuss sharing resources, in particular the multi-use area which contains the disc golf course, nature trails for walking and hiking, horseback riding, cross country skiing, and snowshoeing as stated on town signage by the footbridge. We’re all very fortunate to have so many options within a short distance of our homes.”
Scribner reiterated the goal of shared recreation resources during a recent interview with the Select Board where he was appointed to the Recreation Committee.
On a recent sunny weekend afternoon, people enjoy walking their dogs along the trails that make up the disc golf course at Hope Davey Park. Photo by Gordon Miller
A complaint goes awry
Similarly, users of the disc golf course say they feel the crunch caused by too many people looking to use the same trails differently. Some say there even have been times when nearby residents have harassed them by walking into the middle of the course during throws, seeming to be intentionally getting in the way of flying discs. Others say non-golfers have used their phones to record players even when they are using the course correctly.
Frustration was apparent in one recent complaint that made the news when it went awry. The Stowe Reporter last week reported it received a letter of complaint regarding the Hope Davey disc golf course. It came from a top official in Gov. Phil Scott’s administration who, eager to voice his opinion but avoid notoriety, penned a letter to the editor of the newspaper in the neighboring town and then signed it with a false name.
Ethan Latour, press secretary to the governor until mid-January, used his personal email and cellphone number in the newspaper’s submission form. But the newly minted deputy commissioner of the Vermont Department of Finance & Management also used a pen name, “Walter Blind.”
Soon, reporter Tommy Gardner was asking questions. “You got me,” Latour admitted to the paper, promising this was the first and last time he would try such a move.
But his misguided missive was intended to vent his frustration as a user of the popular course. His message was for town officials to appreciate this “gem of a course” and not be swayed by complaints from neighbors.
“Waterbury is so lucky to have a course like Center Chains,” he wrote, stressing its value for outdoor recreation, exercise, and appreciating the landscape. Defending users, he added, “the vast majority of disc golfers play the game respectfully with nothing but good vibes in their hearts.”
He referred to neighbors with grievances associated with the surge in course activity as “malcontents” but then aptly summed up the situation: “It’s a place anyone can go. And therein lies the problem for these neighbors.
A group enjoys the course on a recent weekend afternoon. Photo by Gordon Miller.
Both sides have a beef
Nick Nadeau, Waterbury’s Recreation and Parks Director, sees the full picture. “Both sides have legitimate complaints,” he said. “Some community members do walk into the middle of the path to record players or potentially get hit, but some golfers do drink and urinate publically.”
Frank Spaulding is chair of the town Recreation Committee. He says that since November, this topic has been dominating committee meetings. More people than ever before are joining the committee meetings held over Zoom video conference because of the pandemic to discuss these issues, he said.
“Our goal as a committee is to serve the recreational resources for all town residents and the town’s guests. There is no predetermined outcome on this conflict of use other than to identify pain points, reduce them, and move forward to ensure a facility that is respected and enjoyed by all,” says Spaulding. “This committee is not committed to any singular outcome other than wanting the uses of the park to be shared on the property.”
Spaulding’s background includes over two decades working at the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation. From his experience, he said he has learned that every public space has a capacity of use. He is not sure what Hope Davey Park’s capacity is yet, but there is no denying that as the park has gained popularity, and with that comes conflicts of use.
Detail at a chain basket on the disc golf course. Photo by Gordon Miller
Seeing benefits beyond the conflicts
Ally Shea lives adjacent to the disc golf course at Hope Davey. A former disc golf player herself, she said she loves having the course right in her backyard, although having a baby keeps her from venturing out to play now. Despite her love of all things having to do with outdoor recreation, Shea said she and her family have still experienced some unpleasantries in the past six months.
“I’ve lost track of the amount of times I’ve seen people peeing either on or very close to our property. One time there was a person practically on our driveway – that was awkward!” she said. “This issue isn’t great and one we weren’t expecting to experience when we bought the land.”
Off-leash dogs are another concern for Shea and her family. Often, dogs will roam onto Shea’s property and defecate on her lawn or have an altercation with her dog, who she describes as “sometimes reactive.” It’s unpredictable and potentially dangerous. “This is a really stressful situation because I never know how the interaction will end,” Shea said.
There are many reasons to solve these thorny issues connected with the park’s popularity. One is to reduce conflicts among community members. Another reason to get things working more smoothly is for the park to be an asset to Waterbury. It’s no secret that the disc golf course brings people to town.
Davis, who grew up nearby in Waterbury Center, describes the activity the course attracts as great for the community and local businesses. “You can pop over to the Cider Mill for a sandwich and a doughnut between rounds, or grab dinner at the Rez or Pro Pig, and buy a four- pack on your way home,” he said.
Downtown retailer Waterbury Sports sells discs and other supplies for disc golf and even has set up a lost-and-found disc return, he added.
Relying on good choices
A quiet moment on the course. Photo by Gordon Miller
Finding an overall solution is complicated.
Consuming alcohol in a town park is not allowed unless at a permitted event. Likewise dogs must be leashed per the town animal control ordinance.
But enforcing these ordinances isn’t straightforward. Vermont State Police provide police services to the town that doesn’t emphasize such calls. Another complication is that Waterbury has been without an animal control officer for about a year. It’s even upgraded the position from an appointed volunteer to offer a monthly stipend of $450 without success.
So it’s largely up to Nadeau to verbally reprimand individuals when they are breaking town ordinances. Ultimately, he said. individuals in question must decide to obey the rules of the park and, in turn, put pressure on peers to do the right thing.
Spaulding admits that it’s difficult for a group like the Recreation Committee to steer behavior that results from individual decisions. “Whatever suggestions the Recreation Committee reaches, there will always be outliers that require a community approach and this will continue to be a tough conversation for the committee,” he said. “Ultimately, individuals will choose to do what they want to do, and I hope that users of the park will choose to respect the park and the people around them.”
Fortunately, Nadeau added, “a lot of people use the park correctly and follow these ordinances, including disc golfers.”
Because Hope Davey is a municipal park, events with large groups require permits with permission granted to allow alcohol and the collection of money; recreation leagues also are charged fees for reserving playing fields and other spots. Nadeau says those steps are well-received by many groups including disc golfers.
Ideally, Nadeau said, a solution would be for the Recreation Committee to create more signs explaining ordinances and park rules for all users. He also would like to see an online platform where the community can submit non-urgent incident reports. If there is an emergency though, users should always call 911, he cautioned.
But, for incidents such as public urination or alcohol consumption, he envisions having a way for users to log them using an app that then is monitored by the Recreation Department. Ultimately, such a system could collect data over time at all of Waterbury’s parks so that signage can be added that’s tailored to each park.
Initial steps are happening
Because the users of the disc golf course are not part of an organization so there is no one leader to speak with to find a resolution. That might soon change.
Volunteers and players have been attending meetings recently and taking part in conversations over the conflicts of use. David Frothingham has stepped up lately as the main contact person between golfers and the town. An engineer by trade, Frothingham also serves on the Waterbury Development Review Board where he is chair.
Frothingham and Davis both explained how plans are in the works to form an organized group to represent and maintain the course. More structure may help, but reaching harmony will take commitment from all of the individuals involved.
“Formal group or not, it is up to the community as a whole to hold themselves accountable for their behavior and to a higher standard,” Frothingham said, education needs to play a role.
Some physical steps can and have been taken already. “There are a variety of pain points identified with the disc golf course, including structural and material points involving the environment, vegetation, and aesthetics,” Spaulding explained. “Then there is also the behavioral impact of the audio of chains/voices, and cases of public urination and defecation, as well as alcohol consumption and dogs off leash.”
Park officials are taking these one at a time. Recently, an additional portable toilet was placed in the Hope Davey parking lot along Loomis Hill Road. Nadeau noted that it’s about 300 yards closer to the course. Spaulding calls that a “structural” solution.
Davis described an innovation that aims to reduce noise. He described how silencers made out of snowmaking tubing have been added to some of the chains on the course. This is done by wrapping the chains in the tubing, reducing the clang of metal hitting metal as a disk enters the basket. According to other users passing by, this has cut the noise from the chains in half, Davis said.
Spaulding, however, is quick to emphasize that “these structural and behavioral impacts accompany heavy use in any park, not just because of the disc golf course.”
Paths are marked along the course with mats. Photo by Gordon Miller.Photo by Gordon Miller
Finding middle ground
Meanwhile, Shea says she is focusing on controlling what she can in her backyard. “We are currently working on beefing up our property line with a mix of evergreen trees to help with privacy. We are also hoping to install a pasture fence along our property line to keep dogs from making their way over. Disc golfers can help by keeping their dogs on leash ... not peeing on the trees we are trying to grow,” she said.
Communication would also go a long way. “I’d love for there to be a very direct way to address an issue (with a neighbor OR a disc golfer) without it becoming an us-against-them kind of situation. Most of the problems I’ve heard about have become far worse because of hearsay and misunderstanding,” she explained.
Those things can be alleviated if people take the time to be friendly and get to know each other. “We don’t want disc golfers to be strangers to us!” Shea said. “Feel free to say hi. And don’t mind if we cut through to the park every once in a while.”
As the summer season approaches, the Recreation Committee will continue to discuss with community members use issues for the park with a goal to make formal recommendations to ease the conflicts. Two decades after the disc golf course began, Spaulding said he believes this is the first significant conflict of use discussion that the committee has faced.
“We view this as an opportunity to provide a balanced and neutral evaluation of the facts. We are not afraid of discussion, this is why we are here, and to encourage folks to think about the fact that as long as we are discussing options, they are simply options. If any community members feel that we are misstepping, I encourage getting involved in these and other kinds of discussions about recreation. Please talk with us, volunteer in the recreational spaces you choose, and get involved with the committee,” he offered.
And in an effort to quell worries he said he knows are circulating, Spaulding said that no one on the committee or in the discussions with the committee to date is looking to shut down the disc golf course. “The passion in the conversation, and worry it might go away is a testament to the value of these spaces. I think that this conversation is valuable and I’m so happy to see passion for these spaces in our town,” he said. “This discussion has reinforced the belief of the value of public properties. Despite the beauty of Vermont and our many public parks across the state, people still value the treasure of little local parks.”
Recommendations in the works
The Recreation Committee is working on a list of recommendations for Hope Davey Park that it plans to share with town officials such as Nadeau, the municipal manager and the Select Board.
Some of the suggestions address wetland preservation and mapping. A number of suggestions being discussed involve taking steps to discourage congregating which frequently involves alcohol. Other ideas look to blend uses on the trails, establish a spot for information to be posted, adjust hours for maintenance, and more.
The April 14 meeting minutes posted on the committee’s page on the town website has more details.