Brookside maintenance building burns

The Barberton Brookside Country Club’s maintenance building burned to the ground the day after Christmas. Most of the facility’s tools and equipment was destroyed in the fire. Photo: Barberton Brookside Country Club

The holidays were marred for those at  Barberton Brookside Country Club in Norton, Ohio this year when a fire raged the day after Christmas. The fire burned the maintenance building at Brookside to the ground, melting their tools together and destroying nearly all of the course’s equipment.

Firefighters from the surrounding communities responded, but were unable to halt the fire’s progress. They could only prevent it from spreading. The 10,000 square foot building contained a 55-gallon drum of oil and many gas powered golf carts that fueled the fire. 52 of the course’s 72 gas powered golf carts were destroyed by the fire.

In the aftermath, club owner Joe Flogge is looking for silver linings in the destruction. There may not be many, but Flogge has found one in the fact that this happened in the dead of winter. With snow on the ground, the facility has time to recover before spring brings golfers back to Brookside. Another positive is that the facility was insured and though they had per-ordered some turf supplies, the shipments had not been delivered at the time of the fire. Those supplies still remain safely in the vendors’ warehouses.

“Right now, we are planning what steps we take next,” says Flogge. As they enter the planning process, the staff will need to prioritize what to replace when. Everything from wrench sets to greens mowers were destroyed. It is currently estimated that the damages are over half a million dollars. Flogge says he will meet with local dealerships in the new year to begin replacing equipment.

The 18-hole course was designed by Donald Ross in 1922 and was awarded the #1 Renovated Golf Course in America by Golf Digest in 2005.

The facility lost 52 of their 72 gas powered golf carts in the fire. The golf carts were leased. Photo: Barberton Brookside Country Club