Sunrise Golf Course will likely close up shop on Oct. 31.
The 9-hole course, located at the southwest corner of Westfield Boulevard and 99th Street, was established by long-time managers Mary Ann Amore and her husband Patrick Amore.
The land was owned by noted Carmel resident Vera Hinshaw who leased the course to the Amores. But Hinshaw died Sept. 1 and her remaining family members would like to sell the property, said her son Tom Hinshaw.
The Hinshaw estate offered the Amores an 11-month lease, but the two sides couldn’t come to terms, Mary Ann Amore said.
“They just raised the price too high,” Mary Ann Amore said, noting that they couldn’t afford the unexpected rent increase in the dead of winter.
Sunrise Golf course is largely free of trees with wide open fairways, and it features a club house and driving range.
“I think it’s a wonderful 9-hole course and a jewel in the recreational amenities that Carmel has within its city limits,” said local golfer Bobbi Munholland of Carmel.
Any potential buyers will luck out because the property already is zoned for single-family residential – a huge bonus for any developer looking to build houses on the property.
It is one of only two Carmel golf courses that weren’t rezoned as parks following the city’s purchase of Brookshire Golf Course in 2007, Carmel Mayor Jim Brainard said.
And as for the Amores, the loss of their family business isn’t the end.
“If we don’t do work, we’ll donate our time at a hospital,” Mary Ann Amore said.
