‘A lot of sleepless nights': Copper Cove Golf Club owners building back after May fire
FRANKLIN COUNTY, Va. (WFXR) — The owners of Copper Cove Golf Club say they are in the process of rebuilding what was lost in a May 16 fire that claimed the Club's entire fleet of 52 golf carts and heavily damaged the pool system.
'We've never experienced anything like this personally or professionally,' said co-owner and club PGA general manager Kelly Crovo, who called the past two weeks, 'stressful.'
Crovo said the fire marshal's office determined there was no foul play involved and that the cause was likely due to an animal biting through a hotwire or the battery in the range cart exploding.
The fire happened just a week ahead of a typically very busy Memorial Day Weekend, when the pool had been scheduled to open.
'We were busy, but financially we could have done way better had we had a full fleet of carts,' said Crovo.
RELATED STORY | Copper Cove Golf Club owners 'devastated' by Friday fire
He said the money from golf cart rentals makes up at least 85 percent of the club's total revenue.
'Obviously we have costs involved with that too, but the margins are a little larger on [the cart rentals] than say buying a soda, a beer, and kind of food product,' said Crovo.
They did not head into the weekend empty-handed, as they received 26 rental carts the Thursday prior to Memorial Day and 10 more from Roanoke Golf Carts to use for the weekend.
Crovo said they are still waiting on a second shipment of 26 rental carts to replenish the 52 they lost in the fire.
They have also begun taking stock of the damage to the pool system, which was housed in the same building as the golf carts.
'The number one priority right now is still in trying to remove the debris from inside the barn and the bathrooms,' said Crovo. 'Once we get that all clear, then we'll have a better understanding of what we need to do.'
They have received a preliminary quote on the repairs required to reopen the pool, but Crovo said he and co-owner Billy McBride do not want to rush anything.
'Billy and I have agreed that we want to build back and try to build back better and more efficient,' said Crovo. 'But we want to do it in a timely manner but not a rushed manner.'
That being said, they are working hard to get everything back online as soon as possible.
'We know that not only is it our livelihoods, but we've got a lot of people here that we hire and it's their livelihood too,' said Crovo. 'It's quite a bit of a weight.'
They had already hired pool attendants, lifeguards, and extra people to help out the food and beverage staff.
'We're still trying to keep everybody employed,' said Crovo. 'It's just a lot of people are having less hours than what they normally would.'
The owners say the best way the community can continue to help out is by coming by to play a round of golf.
The 18-hole course, driving range, and food and beverage services are all operational.
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