Elgar noted the process is in the very early stages and nothing is set in stone yet.

“Any future Official Plan and zoning amendment application is required to be preceded by a pre-consultation meeting where the studies required to submit the applications are identified,” he told the Oakville Beaver in an email.

“The receipt of the pre-consultation request does not necessarily mean that an application will be forthcoming or that the proposal will be as shown at the pre-consultation meeting.”

While Burton acknowledged the Glen Abbey situation, he refrained from discussing what the golf course’s potential development would mean for the town, stating that doing so could cause problems down the road.

“There can be no quick-and-easy answer to this question and here is why… Ontario has a legal framework for land-use decisions. Council sits as a kind of panel of judges,” he said.

“Judges, who do not want to be overturned on appeal, must hear all the evidence before taking positions or making decisions. If we want to judge, we must not pre-judge.”

Elgar spoke more freely about the potential development.

“I have huge issues,” he admitted.

“It is Oakville. That is how everyone knows Oakville, the Canadian Open in Oakville… I think this will galvanize the town. This will galvanize all the residents, and so it should. ”

The proposed development is not sitting well with area residents.

Paul Ryce, president of the Fairway Hills Community Association, which represents homeowners living adjacent to the golf course, condemned ClubLink’s plan.

“We’re 100 per cent against any development of the golf course,” he said.

“Not only from a property value perspective, but also because of the density of the area right now and the traffic. It’s crazy. We’re losing the greenspace, the cultural heritage aspect of Glen Abbey and the value that it brings to the Town of Oakville.”

Ryce said several homeowners in the area bought their homes with the understanding there would be a golf course nearby.

Others paid a premium lot price for a golf course view.

He called the proposed 3,000-plus residential units “crazy” and questioned whether that many new people and their vehicles could even be supported by the area’s existing infrastructure.

The Fairway Hills Community Association will hold its annual general meeting Nov. 12, which Ryce expects to be extremely well-attended.

Ryce also questioned the impact of the scenario on people employed by ClubLink in Oakville.

Stating if ClubLink wants to get rid of Glen Abbey, which he believes is one of its most profitable locations, both from corporate tournaments and hosting the Canadian Open, he asked, “What does that say?”

If this is indeed the end of Glen Abbey Golf Club the economic impact on Oakville will be significant.

Dorothy St. George, director of the Town’s Economic Development Department said Golf Canada has previously stated that when Glen Abbey hosts the Canadian Open it brings economic spin-off to the tune of around $18 million to Oakville and about $25 million for Ontario.

“That’s hotels, restaurants, all the rentals visitors would need to do for the services and all that kind of stuff,” said John Sawyer, Oakville Chamber of Commerce president.

Sawyer declined to comment on the potential development, but said he would be reaching out to the golf course to determine exactly what it is planning.

Attempts by the Oakville Beaver to obtain comment from ClubLink have not, as of publication time, been answered.

According to its website, ClubLink states, “Glen Abbey Golf Club, which welcomes the public golfer and ClubLink members alike, has been a grand stage for golf history since opening more than 30 years ago. The world-famous property is also home to the Academies of ClubLink, the headquarters of Golf Canada, the Canadian Golf Museum and Hall of Fame, and the TaylorMade Performance Lab.”