Essex County Francis Byrne Golf Course Reopens In West Orange

WEST ORANGE, NJ — The Essex County Francis Byrne Golf Course in West Orange recently reopened to the public after an $8.7 million renovation project hit the finish line.

The plan for an upgrade at the course – which has previously been named as one of New Jersey’s top public golf courses – were announced in 2022.

According to a news release from county officials:

“The project included rebuilding all the greens complexes, bunkers, cart paths and tee complexes, removing dead and hazardous trees, redesigning several golf holes and invested in new electric golf carts. Improvements that golfers will not notice, but are integral to operations, are new irrigation systems at tees and greens for better and more efficient use of water, new irrigation pumps to enhance efficiency, a new maintenance building to house golf maintenance equipment, new bathrooms, and a new open-air pavilion for golf outings. Work on the open-air pavilion and maintenance building is ongoing. The upgrades to the maintenance area are not visible to the public.”

According to county officials, the Stephen Kay Golf Course Architect, Inc. from Egg Harbor City was awarded a professional services contract for $285,000 to design the improvements to Byrne Golf Course. Turco Golf, Inc. from Pompton Lakes was awarded two publicly bid contracts for $6,837,631 and $1,664,657 to perform the construction work on the course and build the open-air pavilion, respectively.

The improvements were funded through the Essex County capital budget and with grants from the Essex County Recreation and Open Space Trust Fund and American Rescue Plan.

Work began in September 2022 and was completed in 10 months. The course reopened on July 27.

“Essex County Francis Byrne Golf Course is known for its historic features and beautiful vistas,” Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo Jr. said.

“The work that was done addresses long-standing issues affecting the course, and modernize drainage and irrigation systems so that golfers are provided with championship caliber playing conditions,” DiVincenzo said.

County officials noted that the first hole at Francis Byrne was reconfigured in 2019 to enhance safety at the course and reduce the number of balls that left the golf course and landed on residential properties across Pleasant Valley Way. The last major upgrade at the course was completed in 2009.

The completion of renovations at Francis Byrne Golf Course means that work at all three of the County’s public golf courses has been completed within the last six years. Hendricks Field Golf Course in Belleville underwent a similar modernization initiative and was reopened in 2021. Weequahic Golf Course in Newark saw its entranceway revamped with a new parking lot and open-air pavilion, renovations to The First Tee Learning Center and redesigned 10th and 11th holes completed in 2017.

Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com. Learn more about advertising on Patch here. Find out how to post announcements or events to your local Patch site.