FAIRFIELD — Chautauqua Park’s disc golf course is receiving a makeover with all new holes, a couple new tee boxes and six new pin placements, and it’s all being done through donations and volunteer labor.

The park’s 18-hole course is being transformed by a group led by Wilson Starnes, who just started playing disc golf last year. Starnes explained that he was just months into his new hobby when he felt a calling from the Lord to revamp the disc golf course at Chautauqua Park.

“A lot of stuff has happened here in the last few years, and some people won’t come back out here,” Starnes said. “One thing God does it to take ashes and turn them into beauty. He has me do projects like this for the community and to bring people back in.”

Starnes initially envisioned replacing just a couple of the baskets in the course and fixing the others. But a message from the Lord told him he needed to do more.

“He said, ‘Nope, we’re going all out on the park,’” Starnes said.

Starnes and other volunteers have already made major changes to the course this summer, and they’re finishing up a couple of other projects. They’re planning a grand reopening of the disc golf course on Saturday, Sept. 23, where there will be food, games and a free instructional course on proper throwing techniques.

Starnes said that, as he was beginning his quest to upgrade the course, he received feedback from other disc golfers about changes they would like to see. One was all new baskets, so they would all look the same. Some of the baskets were from the 1980s. Another idea was to install a practice hole in the park, like a putting green at a golf course, so that disc golfers would have a place to hone their short game while waiting for their friends to arrive.

One idea that received a lot of positive feedback was altering the location of the baskets, to give the course a fresh feel and give the golfers a new challenge. The volunteers installed new pin placements at six holes: Nos. 1, 2, 10, 11, 15 and 16. Two of the holes will have new tee boxes. One of those, on hole No. 13, is under construction. Hole No. 2 will get a new tee box, too, but that hasn’t been started yet. That hole will be completely rerouted to accommodate the new bathroom that will be built in Chautauqua Park later this year. Starnes said other holes will get new pin placements, too, as funds are raised.

One of the biggest parts of the upgrade was building a series of wooden bridges by holes 13 and 14. Volunteer Benton Lindquist, who is also an avid disc golfer, explained that that part of the course is also responsible for long delays during tournaments because players are bottle necked on hole 12 while they wait for players to finish 13. Years ago, a row of trees separated the two holes, but those trees have been falling down to the point where now players who tee off on hole 12 want to throw their discs into the nice clearing that happens to be the No. 13 fairway.

Solving this problem required the volunteers to rethink the layout of those holes so they wouldn’t share a fairway. They decided to leave No. 12 alone, and to move the No. 13 tee box north onto the other side of the ravine. This turned No. 13 into a completely different hole, because instead of a straightforward approach to the basket with few trees to worry about, the new No. 13 forces golfers to tee off across the ravine. Not only that, but there are too openings to aim for: a large clearing that’s easy to hit but which leaves a long second shot, or a small clearing that leads straight to the basket but requires great accuracy.

While they were fixing the bottleneck at holes 12 and 13, the volunteers also had to turn their attention to hole 14, which also involves teeing off on the south side of the ravine to a basket on the north side. Starnes said that disc golfers had observed the bridge on hole 14 was in rough shape, so they planned to replace it. While they were making preparations to replace it, the bridge collapsed.

This summer, the volunteers have built two long bridges and a short one, all made of wood. The short one connects holes 12 and 13. Golfers have to cross a 32-foot bridge to play hole 13, and then a 27-foot bridge to play hole 14. Volunteers who have put in many hours helping with construction include Starnes, Lindquist and Austin Lauderman.

One of the big projects left to finish is a welcome sign at hole 1. The sign will be hung from a new structure that the volunteers just finished building on July 22, which includes a bench and canopy for shade. Starnes said they won’t install the new welcome sign until Sept. 22, and will reveal it at the grand reopening the following day.

Starnes said that $8,500 has been raised for the new baskets, and the next round of fundraising will go toward purchasing new signs for each of the 18 tees. Once those costs are covered, leftover funds will go toward improving the nine-hole disc golf course at Waterworks Park. The course follows the perimeter of Bonnifield Lake. The volunteers plan on doubling the number of holes there, so the town will have two 18-hole courses.

Starnes said the group is always looking for more volunteers. Those who wish to pitch in can send a message to the Facebook group “Fairfield Iowa Chautauqua Park Disc Golf Project,” where the volunteers also post updates on their work.

“I thank God because, when He wants something done, He lines up the right people,” Starnes said.

Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com