Analysis: Antioch’s General Fund continues to subsidize water park, golf course at almost $2 million per year
More than enough for both the Homekey+ program and Rivertown Square project
“We need to be fiscally prudent by closely monitoring expenses…and minimize General Fund subsidies to high-cost operations, such as the golf course and water park.” – then-City Manager Ron Bernal in 2017-19 Budget message
By Allen D. Payton
In spite of the Antioch City Council’s reasons for voting against pursuing a state grant for the Homekey+ program for veterans and the homeless at the Antioch Inn & Suites and paying for maintenance for a new Rivertown Square park in downtown, the City’s General Fund continues to subsidize recreation at both the Antioch Water Park and Lone Tree Golf & Event Center at a cost of almost $2 million per year.
This past fiscal year, the water park received over $1.6 million to subsidize its operations, and the budget allows for $1.55 million in this fiscal year. In addition, the golf course receives almost $500,000 in debt service and water costs.
According to the City’s Adopted Fiscal Year 2026-27 Budget, “Parks and Recreation provides the City’s residents recreational, preschool, social and meeting space within the community. Recreation Programs are accounted for in the Recreation Special Revenue Fund. The Recreation Support division within the General Fund provides a subsidy to this fund to support operations.”
The General Fund budget shows Recreation Services Support (Recreation Department) receiving $4,812,031, a 12% decrease from the $5,479,935 in the Revised 2025-26 Budget. Of that amount, Recreation Services was approved to receive $1,937,164 from the City’s Measure W one-cent sales tax or 9.7% of the total revenue of over $20 million from that source. The amount makes up 40% of the total budget for the Recreation Department.
Antioch Water Park Subsidy
According to the Fiscal Year 2026-27 City Budget, the Antioch Water Park will receive $1,552,918 from the General Fund and Child Care Fund, of which $87,500 is from the latter, a 5% reduction from the subsidy of $1,627,359 in the Revised 2025-26 Fiscal Year Budget. That totals 60 percent of the water park’s revenue with the difference generated by Current Service Charges, which includes gate fees to enter the park and $111,000 in concession sales from Gator Grill and Allie’s Oasis.
According to Parks & Recreation Director Shahad Wright, “From the last supervisor report, we had over 30,000 guests but there is no breakdown for kids or adult that I can currently pull.”
Lone Tree Golf & Event Center Subsidy
Although this and last year’s City Budgets do not mention the Lone Tree Golf & Event Center (LTGEC), City Finance Director Dawn Merchant shared, “One of the transfers out to the 2015A debt service fund ($345,518 in FY26/27) is for that debt. The General Fund also pays for water at the golf course when they utilize City water (the Golf Course pays Delta Diablo directly for any irrigation water through them). We budget $150K per year, but the amount really fluctuates.”
Of the $345,518 amount, $343,500 will be used this year to pay the debt for improvements to the golf course and expansion of the event center in 2002. It’s shown in the budget as Antioch Public Financing Authority Debt Service Fund 410 (see page 45) and after this fiscal year’s payment, “the ABAG (Association of Bay Area Governments) portion of the debt will be $1,250,000 at 6/30/27 principal and $343,500 interest outstanding. The debt schedule is on page 316 of the budget,” she added.
Over 53,000 Rounds of Golf in FY25-26
According to Wright’s Lone Tree Golf Course Annual Operations Update for Fiscal Year 2025-26 to the Antioch City Council’s Committee for the Lone Tree Golf Course consisting of Mayor Ron Bernal and District 4 Councilwoman Monica Wilson, there were 53,079 rounds of golf played between July 1, 2025, and June 30, 2026. (COG means Cost of Goods)
The report also shows total revenue for the year of $6,600,248 with $3,091,121 from golf, of which $570,678 was generated by the driving range, and $3,509,127 from food and beverages at the Event Center, which includes Champions Bar & Grill and the banquet facility.
Expenses include Cost of Golf at $1,137,587 and Operational at $5,189,024 for Net Income of $331,796. However, as the report points out there is, “No Capital Expense Deducted” from the total included. That would be the $345,518 for debt service mentioned above. So, the LTG&EC actually experienced a net loss of $13,722. But the $331,796 remains within the facility’s budget and is not used to reimburse the City’s General Fund.
Basically, the General Fund is providing a subsidy of over $9.00 per round of golf to those who enjoy playing the sport in Antioch.
Golf & Event Center Previously Mentioned in City Budgets
The LTG&EC was mentioned in the 2014-15 and 2015-17 Budgets, twice on page 243. That reads:
“ASSOCIATION OF BAY AREA GOVERNMENTS (ABAG) 2001 LEASE REVENUE BONDS (411)
“In July 2001, ABAG issued $6,300,000 of Lease Revenue Bonds to refund the outstanding ABAG XXV Irrigation Project Lease and to finance the construction of a new clubhouse at the Lone Tree Golf Course. The Lone Tree Golf Course reimburses the City for all debt service and other expenditures of the fund. All construction funds have been drawn down, and the final debt service payment will be made in July 2031.”
The same message on that same page was included in the FY2015-17 Budget.
Golf Course & Event Center No Longer Reimburses General Fund, Debt No Longer Mentioned in Budgets
But the debt for the LTGC/LTG&EC was no longer mentioned and the golf course only referred to twice in the FY2017-19 Adopted Budget. On Page iii of then-City Manager Ron Bernal’s budget message it reads, “We need to be fiscally prudent by closely monitoring expenses…and minimize General Fund subsidies to high-cost operations, such as the golf course and water park.”
Then on the Supplemental Information page 295 a note at the bottom reads, “ABAG 2001 Portion – Debt payments reimbursed by Antioch Public Golf Corporation.” The same note was provided on the same page of the FY2019-21 Budget. But it was no longer included as of the FY2021-23 Budget.
Merchant was asked if that is because the debt payments have no longer been reimbursed by the Golf Corporation as of FY2022.
She responded, “You are correct that the reference was removed once the Golf Course stopped reimbursing the City. The debt service payments show in the 2015A Lease Revenue Refunding bonds debt service fund. The transfer out in the General Fund is to move money to that debt service fund for payment of the debt service.”
“As you can see from the report Shahad prepared that you provided, the City’s agreement with the Golf Course only requires that they pay us a small annual fee that is escalated by CPI,” she continued. “Many years ago, due to financial stress at the Golf Course, City council agreed to take on the burden of the debt service within the General Fund and not seek reimbursement from the Golf Course for debt service, and thus the current agreement in place.”
Merchant also shared, “The expenses related to the Golf Course were discussed at the (Council’s) budget meetings held on April 21st and May 5th.”
More Questions for Merchant
Merchant was also asked since there are expenses for the Golf & Event Center from the General Fund, why isn’t it mentioned anywhere in the budget? Shouldn’t it be for full transparency to the public?
What I see is on page 306 of the Adopted Budget, entitled, “APFA 2015A LEASE REVENUE REFUNDING BONDS (410) (Portion related to refunding 2001 ABAG bonds)” it reads, “In February 2015, Antioch Public Financing Authority (APFA) Lease Revenue Refunding Bonds were issued to refinance the APFA 2002 A&B Lease Revenue Bonds and the ABAG 2001A Lease Revenue Bonds. The APFA leases the police facility and animal shelter to the City under a site and facility lease and the base rental payments made by the City represent the debt service on the new bonds. This fund accounts for the portion related to the ABAG bonds and debt service is paid by the General Fund. Final debt service is May 2031.”
Then on page 307, entitled, “APFA 2015A LEASE REVENUE REFUNDING BONDS (417) (Portion related to refunding APFA 2002 A&B Lease Revenue Bonds)” it reads something very similar: “In February 2015, Antioch Public Financing Authority (APFA) Lease Revenue Refunding Bonds were issued to refinance the APFA 2002 A&B Lease Revenue Bonds and the ABAG 2001A Lease Revenue Bonds. The APFA leases the police facility and animal shelter to the City under a site and facility lease and the base rental payments made by the City represent the debt service on the new bonds. This fund accounts for the portion related to the 2002 A&B bonds and debt service is reimbursed by Successor Agency to the Antioch Development Agency. Final debt service is May 2032.”
So, if all the money shown on page 306, $345,518, is spent for the Golf & Event Center debt, shouldn’t the information in the chart on that page be about the Golf & Event Center not about the police facility and animal shelter?
Also, on page 45, entitled, “Transfers By Fund”, I think it would be best that under Antioch Public Financing Authority Debt Service Fund 417 it shows “Police Facility and Animal Shelter” and under Fund 410 it shows, “Lone Tree Golf & Event Center” for full transparency to the public (and media).
Merchant Explains Debt for Golf Course, Police Facility & Animal Shelter Combined When Refinanced
In response, Merchant wrote, “The reason on page 306 (and 307) it references the police and animal shelter is because when the ABAG bonds were refinanced with the 2015A lease revenue bonds, to secure the bonds, the Antioch Public Finance Authority entered into a lease agreement with the City for the Police and Animal Shelter essentially being the security for the bonds thus providing a ‘lease payment’ as debt service for the bonds. The Golf Course provides no security for payment of the bonds.”
“I note your comment about the transfers schedule,” she added. “The titles on page 45 represent the actual fund names in the City’s general ledger accounting system, as do all the transfers listed on the schedule.”
Conclusion – It All Comes Down to Priorities
During a recent council meeting on the Homekey+ program, a resident suggested the Golf Course should raise rounds by just $5.00. If they did, that would generate another $265,000 per year, which, along with the current net revenue, would be enough to cover the costs of water and the debt payment.
In addition, while I was a council member when the water park first opened, I suggested contracting out the operations to a private company. I called one in Sacramento. They said they were interested but were in the process of opening Water World (now Six Flags Hurricane Harbor) in Concord at the time. Perhaps, another private company might be interested, now. All it takes is a phone call to start the process. If it were contracted out, that would eliminate the $1.5 million annual General Fund subsidy.
Combine that amount with requiring the Golf Course Board to reimburse the City for the cost of both the water and bond debt payment for a total of almost $500,000, and Antioch’s General Fund would enjoy almost an extra $2 million per year. That’s more than enough to cover the $1.2 million annually for the Homekey+ program and to cover the estimated $250,000 annual maintenance costs of the Rivertown Square project on the former Beede Lumber Company lot in downtown.
It all comes down to priorities. The Council can continue to subsidize the recreation of some – who don’t all live, here which was an argument about not funding the Homekey+ program – or house some of our homeless residents, reducing their impact on our businesses, police department, Code Enforcement and City budget, and add a new, long-planned park and event center in the City’s historic downtown.
I believe it’s time Mayor Bernal and the rest of the council members heed his message from when he was city manager and, of less importance, ensure the debt for the golf and event center be clearly listed in each year’s budgets for full transparency to the public.
the attachments to this post:
Supplementary Info FY2019-21 Budget p298
Measure W Funds FY26-27 Budget p60
APFA 2026-27 Budget Debt Issue p305
Antioch Public Fincg Auth FY2015-17 p295
Debt Service Funds FY2015-2017 p243
APFA Debt Schedule 2026-27 Budget P316
LTGC Annual Rev & Exp FY2025-26
Water Park Operations Budget 2026-27 p199
