Build a Course

Have you ever thought, “We should have a disc golf course here”? This complete, plain-language resource kit is built for motivated local advocates who want to navigate council approvals smoothly, step-by-step, from a raw initial concept to a fully approved installation.

The Honest Version Upfront: Bringing a course to life is a rewarding project, but it takes time. Most successful installations require 12 to 24 months from first contact to opening day. This isn’t because councils are slow—it’s because budgets are cyclic, approvals require committee review, and robust community proposals take time to build. Staying organized is your key to success.

How the Council Process Works

Many proposals stall because advocates write directly to their local councillor first. To prevent friction, our core Approach Your Council Guide walks you through the precise decision chain used by local governments:

Start with Staff, Not Councillors Your primary gatekeepers are the council’s professional Parks and Open Spaces Officers. They judge site feasibility, costs, and fit. Save elected councillors for later, when you need an internal champion to vote on the final officer report.
Time Your Pitch to the Budget Cycle Councils finalize annual budgets between February and June. To secure capital infrastructure funding, your structured proposal generally needs to land on staff desks by October or November at the latest.
Read the Strategic Landscape Before pitching, look up your council’s current Open Space Strategy or Recreation Plan. Mirroring internal language regarding “passive park activation,” “youth engagement,” or “low-impact, all-ages recreation” makes your document immediately compelling.
Propose a Clear Funding Model Know what you are asking for before making contact. You can propose In-kind support (council contributes site prep; your club funds equipment), Co-funding (matching club/grant money with council cash), or a completely Club-funded install under a licence-to-occupy agreement.

Download the Toolkit & Templates

Don’t start your data gathering or proposal writing from scratch. Work through these pre-assembled resources in order to build an ironclad case for your local reserve:

Resource 1: The Council Guide Read this first. A plain-language guide detailing how councils decide, who to talk to, and how to manage the timeline.
Resource 2: Council Research Worksheet An internal intelligence checklist to map your local government area, identify park officers, note site sensitivities, and check grant alignment before your first meeting.
Resource 3: Pre-Assembled Evidence Pack Verified stats to drop straight into your pitch. Includes national growth metrics, health benefits, CPTED safety principles, cost-benefit comparisons, and user coexistence data.
Resource 4: Community Survey Template A 10-question structural framework (Google Forms/SurveyMonkey) utilizing neutral, credible formatting that holds up under council scrutiny to prove local demand.
Resource 5: One-Page Proposal Template An editable fillable document designed to keep your pitch down to a single, high-impact page while stripping away distracting disc golf jargon.
Resource 6: Letter & Campaign Templates Customizable outreach guides and short, non-intimidating form letters tailored for local residents and clubs to sign and send.

Handling Objections with Data

Parks officers are risk-averse and regularly decline proposals due to a lack of structured evidence. Our kit contains pre-packaged, sourced answers to the most common roadblocks:

Common Council Roadblocks & Quick Facts:
  • Cost Concerns: A 9-hole community course costs between $15,000–$35,000 to install—a small fraction of the cost of skate parks ($150k–$500k+) or bike paths. Ongoing fairway maintenance costs are completely negligible.
  • Safety & Coexistence: Disc golf courses are shared-use, requiring no fencing or exclusion of other park users. Professional designers route fairways safely clear of playgrounds and walking paths.
  • Underutilization & Amenity: Activating green spaces with regular players provides natural surveillance and territorial reinforcement, directly aligning with Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) frameworks.

The Precedent Factor: Councils trust real-world precedent over theory. Review our integrated case studies—such as the City of Mandurah’s Hall Park installation—to show staff exactly how other regions successfully utilized disc golf to displace anti-social behavior and drive low-cost tourism.

What ADG Provides on Request

The downloadable templates give you the baseline tools, but the Australian Disc Golf national body provides hands-on backing to give your final proposal maximum institutional legitimacy:

National Support Letter Once your draft proposal is ready, ADG will supply a signed, formal letter of endorsement on national letterhead, personalized directly to your council and target site.
Pre-Submission Draft Review Email your completed one-page proposal draft to our advocacy team before formal submission; we will review it to flag any structural issues and optimize your language.
Designer & Grant Connections We can provide direct introductions to regional clubs, recommend experienced professional course designers, and offer insight into federal or state sports infrastructure grants.

Submission Note: For formal National Support Letter requests, fill out the template fields and email them directly to secretary@australiandiscgolf.com.

Every single disc golf course running across Australia today started because a local player decided to step up and ask. Use the kit, gather your community data, and let’s get a course approved in your area. For general questions, contact the team at admin@australiandiscgolf.com.au.