SNOHOMISH — Kenwanda Golf Course is set to close its doors sometime in the near future.
Course owner Curtis Creighton confirmed that he intends to sell the 87-acre plot of land to a housing developer and retire.
Originally a cow pasture, the land was bought by Ken Harris and his wife Wanda in the 1960s. The course began being laid down in 1962, began operating by 1964 and was christened Kenwanda Golf Course. The 18-hole course was designed by Ken Harris himself, creating a fun yet challenging day on the links.
A Facebook post referring to the future sale of the golf course spun up conversations from residents of Snohomish.
“I remember when Ken and Wanda were working so hard making that golf course,” Marlene Elmendorf commented. “That was their dream. He would be devastated with it being turned into homes.”
People reminisced, many claiming they were sad to see the course go away.
“I can remember getting my first and only hole-in-one there,” Michael Diers commented. “I didn’t get to see it go because it was the 16th hole. Good thing I had witnesses.”
Although the back nine was closed indefinitely a few months ago, Kenwanda is still operating as a 9-hole course.
Throughout the years, Kenwanda served as the home course for the Glacier Peak High School golf team. Glacier Peak alum and avid golfer Josh Reines said he has many fond memories playing the course and is also sad to see it go.
“Obviously, I don’t want to see it close,” he said. “If you live near the Snohomish valley, there’s not many golf courses to go to that aren’t at least 20 to 25 minutes away. It was always a good place to get a quick round in.”
Since graduating from GP, Reines has been instructing junior golfers during the summer at Snohomish Valley Golf Center.
Although Creighton said he is looking to retire soon and plans to do so once the course is sold, a final sale has yet to be made. The 87 acres of property on Fiddler’s Bluff is valued at over $3 million according to the Snohomish County Assessor parcel map.
