Golfers Urged to Mobilize for Smiley, As Cuervo Advocates for New Housing at Public Golf Course

Golfers Urged to Mobilize for Smiley, As Cuervo Advocates for New Housing at Public Golf Course

Who would think the golf crowd would be mobilizing in the Providence Mayor’s race, but Triggs Memorial Golf Course is organizing -- for Providence mayoral candidate Brett Smiley.

Triggs is a historical golf course owned by the City of Providence and leased to a private company owned by Karl Augenstein.

Augenstein, who lives in North Kingtown, owns Providence Golf, Inc.— the corporation has an interest with FCG Associates which holds the lease for the course.

GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST

He is a significant financial supporter to Smiley and has donated $3,000 to Smiley's campaign.

In an email to golfers, Triggs wrote, “The upcoming Providence Mayoral election is not only important to the residents of Providence, but essential to our Triggs players, friends and family who are passionate about this great Donald Ross-designed championship golf course.”

But Augenstein was part of the group that took control of Metacomet Golf Club in East Providence, another historical Donald Ross course -- and then flipped it for development.
 

Flipped East Providence Course to Developers

As GoLocal unveiled in February of 2020, an email was sent that month to Metacomet club members from Faxon and other members of the management team at Metacomet Golf Club that said the club may be sold due to difficult financial times to an unnamed developer. 

“We would like to inform the Membership that we have entered discussions toward the possible sale of the Club property,” said the email signed by Faxon, Steve Napoli, Brendan VanDeventer, Tim Fay and Karl Augenstein.

“It is probably not a surprise to our members that our first calendar year was financially difficult, with our losses higher than in the Club’s two prior years,” according to the email.

“Our high hopes and primary intent were to grow the Club’s Membership to levels necessary to support the club with minimal 'Outside' play and to maintain the Club as a private club. Based on the golf dynamics of the club and the state, and the downward trends of the golf industry, in general we do not see a path toward our ability to do that as a private or even semi-private club," said the email.

Ultimately, Faxon and his team flipped the course to Marshall Development for development. 

 

Support for Smiley

Now, Augenstein --  after selling off one course -- is trying to keep control of another.

“Providence Mayoral candidate Gonzalo Cuervo has stated publicly multiple times that if elected mayor he would bulldoze Triggs to develop housing.  As you know, Triggs Memorial Golf Course is the only affordable municipal golf course in the City of Providence for working families.  In addition, destroying Triggs would remove one of the last remaining large tracts of open space in Providence further degrading our environment,” added Triggs.

“If you are a resident of the City of Providence we urge you to consider voting for candidate Brett Smiley in the upcoming Democratic primary on September 13, 2022.  Candidate Smiley has a plan to build more affordable housing in Providence while preserving Triggs Memorial Golf Course,” said the Triggs email.

Cuervo was not available for comment.

Messages left for Augenstein were not returned at the time of publication.