Cherry Hills Village – Even though they live next to a prestigious country club, golf isn’t a big deal in the Gallery family.
But they’re trying to make the best of it as tens of thousands of fans trudge past their home this week for the U.S. Women’s Open at Cherry Hills Country Club.
Since it’s going to be a pretty warm week, Megan Gallery, 18, decided to earn a little extra college money by selling bottled water from a backyard canopy facing the 18th fairway. “But the police came and told us we didn’t have the permits to do it,” she said.
Still, that didn’t deter Megan from being neighborly as so many new visitors passed by. “We figured, why not just give the water away for free, because it’s so hot?” said Megan, who was still accepting donations to her college fund.
In a way, that’s been the approach of this mostly residential city of 6,000. The U.S. Open is expected to draw 125,000 people to the city, and most residents say they will try to be accommodating, even if the city won’t get much of a windfall for its trouble.
With almost no retail or restaurant business in Cherry Hills, sales-tax collections won’t exactly fill up city coffers, officials said. But the traffic jams are worth it, as the tournament brings a national spotlight to the golf course, said Gray Neher, chairman of the golf club’s heritage committee.
“I know there are many people who live in Cherry Hills Village who aren’t crazy about having big events like this here,” he said. “But on the other hand, a lot of the golf club’s members are village residents, and if we’re going to maintain the prestige (of) this course, we’re going to have to be on the national public stage once in a while.”
While some feel inconvenienced by the traffic and activity, Mayor Doug Scott noted that large tournaments are a pretty rare event for the city, usually once a decade.
“I think greater benefit, financially speaking, is to the greater south metro area, in surrounding municipalities … where people will stay in hotels, shop and eat,” Scott said.
The golf course has a long history of hosting major professional tournaments, including the first men’s U.S. Open west of the Mississippi in 1938. The city didn’t incorporate until 1945, when only dirt roads led to the country club.
In many ways, the city has been a refuge for the fast-moving, fast-growing south metro area. “We are used to this being a little, quiet village,” said longtime resident Linda Weinerman, 47.
Megan’s mother, Patsy Gallery, said the family purchased their home seven years ago because they enjoy the golf course view, just not the sport itself. No one in the family plays.
“I’m ashamed to admit it, but I don’t even know what Jack Nicholson looks like – or Jack Nicklaus – I can’t remember that golfer’s name,” Patsy said. (It’s Nicklaus.)
Staff writer Manny Gonzales can be reached at 303-820-1173 or mgonzales@denverpost.com.
About Michael Bennet
Michael Bennet, 40, has served as chief of staff to Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper since July 2003. His annual salary is $101,000 for leading the city’s 14,000-person workforce.
Experience includes jobs as an aide to former Ohio Gov. Richard Celeste; editor-in-chief of Yale Law School’s law review; clerk for a federal judge in Baltimore; associate at a Washington, D.C., law firm; counsel to former Deputy Attorney General Jamie Gorelick; special assistant U.S. attorney; corporate turnaround specialist for Anschutz Investment Co.
Bennet is married to attorney Susan Daggett. The couple have three young daughters.
Quote: “For me, the work will be about implementation, not the latest nuances in pedagogical theory.”
Meet the candidate:
4:30 to 5:30 p.m.: Community reception, DPS headquarters, 900 Grant St.
5:30 to 7 p.m.: Community forum follows, moderated by CBS 4 anchor Molly Hughes in the first-floor boardroom, 900 Grant St.
