Cool Crest mini golf could reopen

The distinctive Cool Crest Miniature Golf sign is a prominent sight on Fredericksburg Road and one of the city's historic roadside treasures. The distinctive Cool Crest Miniature Golf sign is a prominent sight on Fredericksburg Road and one of the city's historic roadside treasures. Photo: Billy Calzada, For The Express-News Photo: Billy Calzada, For The Express-News Image 1 of / 18 Caption Close Cool Crest mini golf could reopen 1 / 18 Back to Gallery

The much-loved landmark Cool Crest miniature golf course on Fredericksburg Road appears to be on its way to reopening after a long hiatus.

A lingering title problem has prevented the sale of the historic property for about a year.

But Wednesday, the city's Planning Commission approved closing, vacating and abandoning a 12-foot-wide “alley” that slices across part of Cool Crest's parking lot.

The alley was discovered during a title search last year when San Antonio doctor James Andry tried to purchase the property from the estate of Maria Metzger. And its presence meant Andry couldn't purchase a title insurance policy, which lenders require.

“The bank wouldn't lend the money until the title was clean,” Andry said.

But abandoning and vacating an alley — even one that no one knew existed — meant that all of the adjoining property owners had to be contacted and sign off on it, said Kevin Lopez, chief of staff for District 1 Councilman Diego Bernal, who has been trying to shepherd the property through that process.

“It was just jumping through this red tape,” Lopez said. “We've been telling people we need this thing done. Otherwise he's just going to let it go.”

The issue is expected to go to City Council for approval in the next two weeks.

Andry and his Los Angeles-based brother, Albert Andry, plan to purchase Cool Crest, refurbish it and reopen it. Like many who grew up in San Antonio, they have a sentimental soft spot for the miniature golf course, located on a hilltop that usually catches breezes even in hot weather.

“He took his first date there, and I took my first date there,” James Andry said.

They had hoped to reopen Cool Crest this year — its 75th anniversary year.

But at this point, James Andry is not sure that's possible. “That's going to be a little tough with the time frame of things. We're going to try to work diligently,” he said.

A year ago, he had contractors look at the site and give him estimates on what work needed to be done, but the title problem stopped him in his tracks.

And because the site has a historic designation, any exterior work has to go to the city's Historic and Design Review Commission for approval.

The site, at 1414 Fredericksburg Road, has been a miniature course since 1929, according to research by city staff. But it didn't have the Art Deco look and feel it's known for until Harold Metzger, a Texas trucker, sold his truck, leased the site and opened an 18-hole course there in 1937.

While other courses used miniature windmills and lighthouses as obstacles, Metzger fashioned a unique course with natural slopes, waterways, hundreds of banana trees and other greenery.

He bought the site after serving in World War II and added a second 18-hole course in 1960.

His wife, Maria Metzger, ran Cool Crest after he died in 1998.

The property was dotted with funky old outdoor furniture, and the loudspeakers often played Hawaiian ballads. The tropical array of plants at one time included the signature banana, along with plumbago, plumeria, oleander, ginger, honeysuckle and papaya, mango and ginko trees.

Cool Crest closed around 2007, according to Express-News archives, when Maria Metzger was no longer able to operate it. She died in February 2010.

Real estate agent Paul Ritter, who listed the property for the Metzger estate, said the property is in fair condition but needs updating.

“A lot of the beautiful tropical things are gone,” he said. “The banana trees mostly survived this. They actually look pretty good. The fountains are in good shape, and the pumps are still working.”

Ritter said the alley issue evidently had been lingering since around 1957 when the city abandoned one half of the alley but left the other half in place.

“I thought it was going to close a year ago,” Ritter said. “But it's coming back. I remember being 5 years old and playing there myself.”

Patricia Doria, a board member of the Los Angeles Heights/Keystone Neighborhood Association, said neighbors have been waiting for the course to reopen. With a bus-rapid transit system expected to start along Fredericksburg Road in December, Doria hopes for a revival of the corridor.

“We have the BRT going down Fredericksburg Road and have the golf course there. Oh my. That's big for the neighborhood,” Doria said. “That's where my dad used to take us. You ask anyone in the neighborhood and that's where everyone used to go.”

jhiller@express-news.net

Twitter: @Jennifer_Hiller

Express-News archives contributed to this report.