Front Entrance Facelift--Part 1

As the old saying goes "You never get a second chance to make a first impression."  For a few years now the sign at our front entrance has not represented the quality of golf course we are trying to produce for our guests.  The paint on the old sign was faded, the sign dirty, and the posts rotted through and only being held up on one side by steel support beams and long bolts. So this year we decided to give the sign and the entrance area a facelift.  Hopefully it will provided the first impression we are looking for.

We removed the overgrown plants and the years of old mulch from around the sign.  The sign was removed and taken to the maintenance building for a good cleaning and a tree that overhung the sign was cut down and cleaned up.  After we removed the steel supports that had been holding the left side of the sign up we had to pour new footers for the cinderblook columns that were to be constructed.

Two new 8 foot tall cinderblock columns were constructed which were then wrapped using Airstone from Lowes.  The Airstone was a great product to use as it is lightweight, can easily be cut to fit with a hacksaw or a radial arm saw outfitted with a masonry blade, and is easily attached to the block wall with an exterior adhesive.  The varying colors, textures, and thickness of the Airstone gave us the ability to contrast the stone work and give the columns some character and interest.

After a nice bath and a new coat of paint the sign looks brand new.  The sign project turned out better than I thought it would.  The remaining steps in the project, which will be happening over the next couple of weeks, will be to add some new plants, level the area up and lay new sod, and install some much needed uplighting on the sign which will help our guests locate the course easier on dark early mornings.

As all projects at Harrison Bay are a team effort the success of this project fell squarely on the shoulders of Willie Hamby (left) and Bill Greene (right).  Neither of them are block masons or stone masons so there was a lot of measuring and remeasuring to make sure everything would fit perfectly, and it did.  It always amazes me how many different hidden talents agronomy staff members possess.  It takes more than just the ability to grow and mow grass to succeed on a golf course and I am very thankful our staff always rises up, goes above and beyond, and continues to improve Harrison Bay.