Mayoral challenger's campaign flier is at odds with incumbent's stated stance on Soldiers Field Golf Course

Oct. 10—ROCHESTER — A claim about the future of Soldiers Field Golf Course in a new campaign flier might be changed.

"If she goes on the record, I will modify the flier, " Rochester mayoral challenger

Britt Noser

said Monday, regarding a claim about Mayor

Kim Norton

's stance on the golf course. "I'm not looking to cause that kind of controversy."

Noser's campaign posted a copy of the new flier on Facebook on Saturday evening. The flier, which Noser said has seen its first printing, seeks to highlight differences between the challenger and the incumbent mayor in a variety of areas.

It states that Noser supports saving Silver Lake Dam and Soldiers Field Golf Course, while alleging Norton supports removing both.

Norton, however, has repeatedly stated she supports keeping 18 holes of golf at Soldiers Field.

"I support leaving 18 holes," Norton said Monday when asked about the campaign's claim. "I don't know how much clearer I can be, and not in the short term but the long term. That's been my position, and I have not changed it."

Noser said his campaign team moved forward with the new flier based on Norton's support for the new Soldiers Field Park master plan, which leaves open the possibility for scaling back golf at the downtown park in 10 years.

Additionally, the short-term Soldiers Field plan, which has been adopted by the Rochester Park Board, cites the potential for modifying up to three holes on the existing golf course to make room for an expanded aquatics facility and other park amenities.

"She supports the master plan of Soldiers Field, and the master plan has nothing in it that does not support, at the very least, a modification of the golf course," Noser said, stating Norton's stance has been vague.

Norton called the move "disappointing" and pointed out she never voiced support for changing the golf course.

"I have never once said that," she said.

Rochester Parks and Forestry Division Head Mike Nigbur said last week that the design process for the proposed $10 million aquatics facility in the master plan will define the size and features in the proposed aquatics park, so potential impact to the golf course remains uncertain.

When they are complete, final design decisions are expected to be reviewed by the Rochester City Council and park board, which have voiced a desire to limit potential impacts to the golf course.

Norton cited a desire to find ways to avoid changes to the Soldiers Field Golf Course when asked about the future of municipal golf on Friday.

"I support adding the amenities suggested for the south end of Soldiers Field (Park) to other parks in Rochester," she said of a proposed picnic shelter and nature play area that could require some existing golf course space.

On Monday, she said she's confident the proposed pool expansion can be completed without significant change to the nearby golf course.

"My preference would be that they leave the course alone as much as they possibly can and find a way to change the layout of the pool," she said.

When it comes to the future of

Silver Lake Dam

, differences between Norton and Noser are more clearly stated.

Noser said he wants to keep the existing dam in place, while Norton said she supports a Rochester Public Works proposal to replace it with a new control structure, commonly known as a riffle dam, to make way for new recreational activities and added pedestrian and bike access around the lake and to the west side of the Zumbro River.

"I know they are calling it dam modification, but I think most people's idea of a dam is what's out there," Noser said, adding that any removal of the existing structure is a dam removal.

Norton said her support of the proposed changes, which have not been fully designed, has limits.

"If the engineer says 'No we can't maintain the lake,' my support for it will change," she said.

When it comes to the Silver Lake issue, Noser said he stands by the campaign material, but he will review Norton's stance on Soldiers Field to determine whether future printings of the flier need to be modified. .

"There's rhetoric in political campaigns, but a complete misrepresentation is not helpful to me," he said of his campaign's flier.