Tuesday night, the Sumner City Council approved Colliers International to broker the sale of the Sumner Meadow Links golf course.

The city council voted in October to put the course up for sale, nearly 20 years after the land’s original purchase. In seeking a real estate firm to handle the sale of the property, city staff determined Colliers International “rose to the top of the list as the most qualified team and company to list the property,” according to a  press release.

Sumner’s city government purchased the 292 acres that would become the links in 1993, believing the popularity of golf would make a city-owned course a self-sustaining, revenue generating investment. This proved not to be the case; the enterprise was plagued by a lukewarm reception and ongoing expenses such as its bond debt and, later, hefty course management fees from its third-party operator.

For a full report on the history of Sumner Meadows, click here.

After the October vote, Mayor David Enslow and city staff released a call for proposals from brokers. They met with five interested candidates and met a second time with the top two. Colliers was the winner, and staff brought their recommendation to the council Tuesday.

Colliers will begin advertising the golf course in early February. Offers are expected to be due sometime in March, according to the city release. If that holds true, the council will meet with potential buyers in April before making their decision.

Based on positive input from Collier representatives Matthew McGregor and William Condon, the city press release speculated the land would be attractive to buyers and, possibly, industrial developers; 132 acres of the land are zoned for industrial use.