Golf course restaurant to get new vendor, new name

Published 1:56 pm Wednesday, January 28, 2015

A new restaurant vendor is coming to the Auburn Golf Course.

And the restaurant is getting a new name.

“Copper Falls is no longer operating out at the golf course,” Mayor Nancy Backus announced at Monday night’s regular study session of the City Council.

There is no restaurant food available at the golf course right now, and there probably won’t be until early-to-mid February, Backus added.

The City of Auburn does not yet have a signed agreement with a new vendor. It is in talks with an unnamed interim concessionnaire at the moment, but no agreement has been signed.

Copper Falls vendor’s seven-year contract with the City had ended, and City officials described the parting with Kava, LLC as “a mutual separation.”

“There were some things (the City) wanted to see change out there, but it wasn’t within the scope of what they wanted to do,” said Dana Hinman, City public affairs and marketing manager.

“There probably wasn’t the increase in growth that the City had looked for in that length of time,” said Daryl Faber, director of Auburn Parks, Arts and Recreation. “It seemed like the restaurant sort of stagnated, and the City wanted to take it to a more popular level, especially with the golfers and active users. It really wasn’t a case of not making enough money or anything like that. Obviously, everybody wanted to make it more successful.”

At the moment the City is working to get the restaurant opened for operation. The unnamed potential concessionaire, via a private contract with the Auburn Rotary Club, has already catered three luncheons there.

“The City is doing some minor improvements like recarpeting and painting, you know, the stuff you need to do after seven years of operation, and we’ll be cooperating with whomever the future tenant is on any other improvements that need to be done. But no structural changes are being proposed. There’ll be a new operator, a new menu and cosmetic improvements,” Faber said.

“I can see nothing but very positive improvements,” said City Councilmember Bill Peloza, also a member of the Auburn Rotary Club.