Renovation of the six sand bunkers on the Panorama West golf course got underway April 27 and were finished in early May.
Many improvements have been made at the Panorama West golf course over the last three years, thanks to a $473,000 estate gift from James and Joyce McLuen.
That gift made it possible to install a new irrigation system, add new sections of concrete cart paths, improve turf conditions over a three-year period, landscape around the clubhouse, and add new tee signs, trash receptacles, ball washers and directional signs.
The bunker renovation is being paid for with $15,000 that remains from the McLuen gift, $1,835 raised in a 2018 golf tournament at Panorama West organized by volunteers, and up to $15,000 from the Lake Panorama Association.
The project involved removing existing sand and gravel, flushing drainage tubes and drains, and installing new drains, as needed. Minor reshaping of the traps was done, followed by new gravel and a two-inch layer of capillary concrete.
This patented product includes aggregates and polymers mixed with concrete. It is porous, allowing water to drain more quickly, thereby reducing washouts and bunker maintenance. The final step was filling the traps with new sand.
James and Joyce McLuen, who both died in 2016, directed 20 percent of their estate to Friends of Lake Panorama to be used at Panorama West. The McLuens were some of the first homesteaders at Lake Panorama. Their home was located near Sunset Beach, and they enjoyed boating, fishing and golfing.
A bench, plaque and sign honoring the McLuens is near the Panorama West pro shop door.