Bath residents are poised to decide whether The Bath Golf Club’s owners should be allowed to build housing on the course, which would reduce it from 18 holes to nine.

Golfers Gavin Baillargeon (left) and Steve Fontaine putt on the green in the proposed area for the multifamily housing project at The Bath Golf Club, which voters will decide on June 11. Paul Bagnall / The Times Record

The club has proposed building 70 townhouses on the 120-acre property, but the Bath City Council blocked the project in October 2023. The council opted to send the question to voters.

A “yes” vote would remove housing development as an option within the golf course zoning district from the Land Use Code, effectively blocking multi-family housing development. A “no” vote would keep multifamily housing developments as allowed in the land use code and could allow the golf course owners to pursue the housing project.

The club is owned by Resurrection Golf, which also owns Old Marsh Country Club in Wells. The Bath Golf Club was built in 1932 as a nine-hole course, and managing member Sean McCarthy said it hasn’t been profitable since it expanded to 18 holes in 1994.

The golf course’s owners have said the project would help the course survive, if on a smaller scale.

The other question appearing on the ballot is to decide whether to approve the Regional School District 1 budget, which passed a referendum vote with Bath-area residents and school board members on May 28.