Pocono golf course, land up for sale in Monroe County

A Poconos golf course is hitting the auction block and it comes with 409 acres of land, much of which is developable for other uses.

Middle Smithfield Township has hired CBRE to sell its Country Club of the Poconos Municipal Golf Course on Big Ridge Drive in East Stroudsburg.

The golf course sits on 118 acres of the property and has an 18-hold Fazio designed course and clubhouse.

Annette Atkinson, township supervisor, said the township administration has been looking to sell the property since about 2012.

“We’re a municipal government. We’re not in the golf business,” she said. “We believe we never should have owned it. Let someone who knows how to run a golf course own it.”

In addition to putting the property back on the township’s tax rolls, Atkinson said there is nearly 300 acres of developable land surrounding the course that qualifies for the LERTA tax-abatement program.

She said whoever buys the property can incorporate the golf course into its master plan and use it as an amenity.

She said a small, branded hotel such as a Hyatt or Marriot would be an example of a good use for the property that would benefit from the golf course and create jobs.

She noted that there has been a need for a hotel in the township since the Fernwood Hotel was destroyed by fire in 2018.

She said the property could also be used for residential development, such as a senior living complex.

The buyer would not have to keep the golf course, but could close it and use the property for open space.

Bids for the property are due December 17. More information on the property can be found here.