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Newton golf club is private and not subject to federal handicap-access law, so Bob Lobel can't play golf there, judge rules
By adamg on Wed, 05/31/2017 - 12:12pm
A federal judge today dismissed Bob Lobel's suit against a Newton golf course over its refusing to let him use an "adaptive golf cart," ruling it's a private club exempt from the federal Americans with Disabilities Act.
After being denied permission to use one of the carts because club officials feared it would rip up greens and bunkers, Lobel sued, charging the golf course is a place of "public accommodation" and so required to let him use the device because he is disabled and could not otherwise golf without one. The club's denial came after a member invited Lobel for a round.
In his decision today, however, US District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor, ruled the club is not a place of public accommodation because:
[T]he undisputed evidence shows that Woodland has all the basic characteristics of a private club, including genuine selectivity of membership and exclusion of non-members from regular or indiscriminate use of its facilities. It is therefore not subject to the requirements of the ADA, and Lobel’s motion for summary judgment will be denied and Woodland’s motion for summary judgment will be granted.
Neighborhoods:
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Comments
bob lobel
golf cry baby among other things.
Well,
he does suffer from Spinal Stenosis who if you mean that someone who has a medical condition condition is "cry baby"....
Unfortunately, Mr. Lobel had his eye on attending a very exclusive (you have have to recommended by three people plus take an interview), private golf club. The judge ruled correctly as private clubs, as very loosely described in the Act, can discriminate in this matter.
Now, I think what the club saying that this cart will do damage to their lawns is a bit of a stretch. The cart in question appears to be a golf cart with a chair that supports the person to a standing position so they can swing. Methinks it is because, ahem, they really don't want to accommodate those who identify as disabled and require assistance such as Mr. Lobel.
Um, I don't know of ANY golf course that allows
carts to be driven onto either the tees or the greens. And it's for exactly the reason that the Club stated in their defense - to avoid PREVENTABLE damage to the surface.
Um, you can drive a cart* to where
you are taking your shot.
*clarified by asking my colleague who is an avid golfer.
You have no idea what you're talking about
Carts are never permitted in the tee box, within 30' of the green, or in hazards. Courses often would prefer they stay out of fairways as well -- remain relegated to the cart paths and the rough alongside fairways.
Here is the International Junior Golf Academy writeup.
but what if...
I don't golf, so I don't know what the rules are here. But now I'm curious...
if golf courses don't allow you to drive your cart on the green, what would be the situation if this incident happened at a public course? Wouldn't a public course be required to follow the rules of ADA, and allow the person to take their specialized cart onto the green?
No, you can't
I may be misunderstanding you & your colleague, but you can't drive a traditional cart onto tees or greens - generally courses put signs up about 15 yards in front of the greens to encourage golfers to keep their distance. You must stop and get out of the cart & walk to hit your shot.
This disability cart is designed to allow you to drive onto the green and let you putt while using the cart seat as support. That is what Woodland is assuming will damage their greens
Perhaps
But you still cannot take your cart into the middle of the fairway, even if that's where your shot landed.
Driving a cart onto the greens is a big no-no
You cannot drive a cart on the greens. Every course I have played at this is strictly prohibited. That's what exactly the article says. Maybe you don't know what the greens exactly are. Google it.
Agree
Now metal spikes aren't allowed at some courses, you can't drop the flagpole on the green, you have to place it down.
crybaby before Spinal Stenosis
I saw him cry on the air one night. it was a very strange sports segment.
Funny.
Not.
not trying to be funny
I saw him breakdown and start crying on air one night. they cut right over to liz walker and sports was over for the night. it was very strange.
The club is private? Apparently when it suits them.
Why do do they get annual 6 figure real estate tax exemption under the premise of providing undeveloped land benefiting Newton?
Because if they didn't get that exemption
they'd probably go ahead and sell most of the land to real estate developers, who would then turn most of the course into McMansions and condo complexes.
Given those options, I'd rather have a large golf course, even if the general public cannot use it.
If they want to flaunt their ADA exclusion
then I'm 100% in favor of Brookline revoking the tax break, seizing the fairway, paving over the whole area, and painting it green. If you want to be an incorrigible shitheel in your private club, godspeed, but if I were a Brookline taxpayer, I'd want to see the place nuked from orbit.
And if the Town of Brookline
were to do that, how long do you think it would be before the Town turned around and sold part, if not all, of that land to a developer. Oh right, but granting tax exemptions to preserve green space, even if it is a PRIVATE golf club, is the devil's work.
When did this Newton golf course up and move to Brookline?
Did I miss something?
Fairways are nominally green
But in terms of usable open space by the public or by the flora and fauna, green space it ain't. It's a heavily fertilized topology smoothed mono-culture, mowed with obsession. That a few birds or deer or gophers are kicking around from time to time hardly makes it functioning green space.
Yeah, and in fact a parking
Yeah, and in fact a parking lot would be a lot more "green" given that it doesn't take hundreds of gallons of water a day to maintain.
Those entities would pay
Those entities would pay taxes. Instead the town/state is subsidizing filthy rich snobs to give the middle finger to disabled persons. Want to talk about the rich paying their fair share? Tax this good old boy's club.
Remarkable logic
I'd stay and chat but I have an appointment back on earth.
Woodland's membership fee is 40k per year
Even with that they would have a hard tiime staying in operation as it is a relative small club (133 acres) - they have taken advantage of a relatively obscure open space law & combined it with their "non-profit" status to scam the real estate tax code.
They went to court over this when their status was challenged in 2007 - at that time it was getting a $300k exemption (a 75% tax break). Not sure exactly but I believe they leverage their membership's network to get subsequent legislative support for this.
This case regarding handicap access clearly has some other legal hurtles to clear but the idea that taxpayers are subsidizing a "private club" stinks. Like I said initially - they are private when it suits them - an community oriented apparently for financial gain.
It says in the ruling that it is 14K a year (for a family of 4)
Not sure where you got 40k from?
I just upvoted Dave from Boston
This real life?
There are lots of tax exempt private properties
If the exemption is for non-profit, as long as they are not for-profit, they are abiding by what they need to do.
Colleges, universities, private schools, various sundry religious institutions. They all get real estate tax exemption.
But colleges and universities have to comply with ADA
Other reasons
Colleges and universities don't just get tax exemptions. They also get federal funding. If they turned down all that funding they wouldn't have to follow ADA. For a university like Harvard, that's about 600 million a year in R&D grants alone. ADA is cheaper.
Remember what Groucho said about
clubs Bob.
Remember what Scalia said about
golf.
and what Dick Cheney said about
hunting.
??
"Why can't we get drivers like that?"
Eminent Domain
Doesn't the Boston area have a housing crisis?
Instead of letting a handful of highly exlcusionary people with too much money consume an unfairly huge amount of earth for their BS 'sport'... take the land, for a mix of Affordable and Section 8 housing, plus public green space.
No backtalk, Newton, or I'm thinking wind farm and methadone clinic, too.
Emminant Domain = bad
If they have some sort of non-profit tax break, that may be worth a re-look to ensure it's still valid. But otherwise, eminent domain is a terrible idea and terrible precedent to set.
Funny comment on the wind-farm / methadone thing, though.
Pretty sure we already have a couple
Methadone clinics.
A wind farm (or, one windmill anyway) might be just the right addition for that golf course to give back to the community...
Engineering Project?
Seems like a project for an engineering prof and his/her students: Design a 'golf cart' that does not tear up sod. Maybe use treads in place of wheels? If golfers can wear cleats, maybe they could be put on the treads.
I have to think that the PGA has plenty of money and good do good with some of it.
Slippery slope argument
Please tell me they're making a slippery slope argument.
Private clubs are protected
Private clubs are protected because the law was written and approved by the very same rich lawyers who are members of those private clubs!!! Duhhh.
Huge decline in golf
Nature may take its course (no pun intended). There has been a huge decline in golf in recent years, to the point where some private clubs are waiving membership fees and begging people to join. In some cases, only weddings and bereavements sustain the clubs.
The OUI Drugs arrest of Tiger Woods will only speed the decline.
Woodland is not one of those clubs FISH...
From my understanding, clubs like Woodland are so high end, they do not have any issues with revenue or membership.
The "lower" end clubs do need help sustaining though.
I gave up golf twenty years
I gave up golf twenty years ago to play hockey year-round. Speaking of hockey, I fondly remember watching Bob Lobel in net at the old Garden, taking penalty shots from Bobby Orr.
Aroldis Chapman beat his wife
Well, I'm done with that awful baseball forever.
Yeah, no.
The best part about this ruling.....
Is the part where the club agreed to let Lobel use his cart if he agreed to never come back again!
I thought that was hilarious for some reason.