Coleman addresses irrigation issues at golf course

WALLA WALLA – Walla Walla Parks and Recreation Director Andy Coleman presented a report on irrigation issues, particularly water loss, at Veterans Memorial Golf Course to the city council Wednesday night.

In the fall of 2023, the operator of the golf course, W3 Entertainment, indicated there were issues with the irrigation system.

This past spring, Coleman explained that following a walk of the course involving city grounds staff and W3’s grounds supervisor, issues identified did not appear to be outside typical issues expected for a system that size.

In April, the issues remained, and it was agreed upon that W3 would create a map and identify leaks for city staff to repair. City staff repaired six or seven leaks and W3 staff indicated they would handle repairing the rest of the breaks. However, irrigation issues continued to be reported with another map and list produced which resulted in city staff repairing 45 leaks in about nine hours.

Coleman reported that on Sept. 16, it was determined that too much pressure was coming from the pumps due to an issue with the diaphragm and the pressure-reducing valve, which caused tee-fittings and 90-degree fittings to break in the irrigation system. The pressure issue has since been resolved, although W3 reports leaks continue to be discovered due to the irrigation system being compromised for a long duration.

On Oct. 26, city staff repaired leaks at locations that were excavated.

The next step is to send a team in early spring 2025 to identify and make repairs on a hole-by-hole basis and hire an independent consultant to evaluate the golf course’s irrigation system.

Photo via Veterans Memorial Golf Course

---

Elkhorn Media Group

---

---