National Park Service Selects Johnson Golf Management as Concessions Operator for the Highland Links Golf Course at Cape Cod National Seashore

Date: April 15, 2014
Contact: George Price, Superintendent, Cape Cod National Seashore, 508-957-0739
Contact: Jonathan Meade, Chief of Business Services, Northeast Regional Office, 215-597-9014

PHILADELPHIA - National Park Service (NPS) Northeast Regional Director Michael A. Caldwell has announced the selection of Johnson Golf Management, Inc., to operate the Highland Links Golf Course, located at Cape Cod National Seashore, in the town of Truro, MA.  The Highland Links Golf Course is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and is considered the oldest links course in America, established in 1892.  The golf course offers a rare opportunity for golfers to play a true links course, with coastal views and minimally manicured terrain. The course is part of a larger historically significant area, with the adjacent Highland Lighthouse and Highland House (a historic summer hotel currently home to the Truro Historical Society), and the nearby Highlands Center, a former U.S. Air Force Station under development  with a focus on science, art, and educational programming.

The Highland Links operates as a traditional links course, and this will continue under the new management.  Caldwell noted that, "This new concession contract will retain the same authentic links experience that visitors enjoy now.  We look forward to working with the new concessioner to serve visitors and protect this important resource."  

Johnson Golf Management, Inc., a Massachusetts-based corporation, has operated golf courses since 1988.  It currently operates Whaling City Golf Course in New Bedford, MA; Pakachoag Golf Course in Auburn, MA; and Indian Meadows Golf Course in Westborough, MA.

Johnson Golf Management, Inc., Business Manager Jason Laramee noted that, "We are grateful to have the opportunity to bring our expertise and dedication to such a unique and spectacular golf course.  We look forward to working with Cape Cod National Seashore and the local community to preserve the natural beauty of this historical Scottish-style links course. "

The new ten-year concession contract is authorized under the National Park Service Concessions Management Improvement Act of 1998 which requires a competitive process. The NPS concessions program manages commercial visitor services that are necessary and appropriate for public use and enjoyment at National Park sites. The NPS solicited proposals for this contract through a prospectus which was published in January 2014. A panel of National Park Service subject matter experts reviewed all proposals and, based on the criteria stated in the prospectus, recommended Johnson Golf Management Inc., for the Regional Director's selection. The criteria and evaluation method are prescribed in the federal regulations that govern NPS concessions operations, 36 C.F.R. §51.16.

More information about visiting Cape Cod National Seashore can be found at www.nps.gov/caco.

To learn more about concessioner operations in the National Park Service visit www.concessions.nps.gov.

###