Construction started recently on the Jeremy Pern designed Casa Green Town Golf Course situated just outside Casablanca, Morocco. (www.casagreentown.ma/plan.php)
The 18 hole Championship Golf Course sits in the middle of a hugely ambitious urban development project master planned by the Boston based architects ICON. The development includes a new university campus, a private hospital, a commercial and business centre, a luxury hotel as well as housing for over 15,000 people. The 600 units around the golf course were put up for sale in April 2009 and all have already been sold.
The 350 hectare site, situated between downtown Casablanca and the airport, has been created as an extension to the city and is aimed at the local population rather than tourism.
The 95 hectare golf course has been located in the heart of the project and has been developed as a core golf course with housing situated for the most part outside of the course boundary. The par 72, 6,500m course sits on an undulating site with all but 4 holes visible from the club house perched just above the 9 and 18 greens. A short par three course, a 30 bay driving range and a 3,500m2 putting course completes the project.
Jeremy Pern said, “We were extremely fortunate to have a client, the CGI (www.cgi.ma) who realized that the golf course should be something more than just a means of selling houses.
“The course and its surrounds have become the focal point of the whole urban development and particular attention has been paid to the creation of large expanses of green space planted with low water requirement species that are seldom found on Moroccan golf courses.
“The irrigation water will be recycled water and run off from the housing zones and the selection of the all vegetation has been made with particular reference to minimizing water consumption. The use of native cactus type plants and olive trees, together with a small citrus orchard near the club house reflects both the recent agricultural past and the indigenous vegetation long since gone from the area.
“The course itself winds gently up to a high ridge overlooking the whole area beside the 4000 hectare Bouskoura Forest. We have created a deep Oued, a sort of dry water course, that runs through the middle of the course enabling us to create some outstanding and original golf features.”
The course is being built by the French based golf course construction company Gregori International, (www.gregori-international.com) and the Rainbird irrigation system has been design by Imagineur (www.imaginieur.com). Completion of the course is due in mid 2010.
Jeremy Pern, Golf Course Architect www.jeremypern.com