A nine-hole round at Shoop Park Golf Course costs $13 for adults in 2026, with $12 for seniors and $9 for juniors, according to the Johnson Park Golf Course page for Shoop. Troon Golf still operates the course, under an agreement with the City of Racine that runs through December 31, 2027.
The course looks unchanged this fall, and so does the paperwork in Wind Point. Three months after the Racine Common Council voted for the redevelopment now called Lighthouse Dunes at Shoop Park, the lease covering Wind Point's land next to the lighthouse is still unsigned. The village's lease document has a blank effective date. The approvals that will decide what gets built beside the lighthouse go through Wind Point's own boards, and those reviews haven't started.
Racine's vote covered the city's land
There are two landowners here. Racine owns the course, but the course sits inside the Village of Wind Point. That's why the Racine County Eye reported that the Common Council, not the Wind Point Village Board, had the authority to approve the long-term operating agreement for the golf property.
The Council approved it on July 21, 2026. The vote was 15-0 with one abstention, two years to the day after the Johnson Leipold group first proposed the project, according to the Racine County Eye. Before the vote, District 5 Ald. Jens Jorgensen told the Council the proposal was "not perfect," but that "it gets us out of the hole we are in." He was referring to the course's deteriorating condition and the city's long-stated inability to pay for repairs.
The proposed terms the Council took up are substantial. Leipold Johnson Golf Group would sign a 10-year lease, renewable at its option for four more 10-year terms, for a possible total of 50 years. The group would pay Racine $1.96 million upfront plus $25,000 a year adjusted for inflation, and would spend at least $10 million on a course redesign by Keiser Golf Group, new irrigation, a new clubhouse, bluff stabilization, and a return to prairie-dune habitat. The upfront payment goes to the Parks Department's new King Center. Racine's communications director said that payment and the Shoop investment are separate commitments.
All of that covers city-owned land. The parking lot is on village-owned land near the lighthouse, and that land is under a separate lease that Wind Point controls.
Five conditions before the village signs
On February 24, 2026, the Wind Point Village Board voted 7-0 to approve a lease with Leipold Johnson Golf Group, LLC, for village land to be used as a parking lot. It authorized the Village President and Village Administrator to sign the lease only after five conditions are met:
- A developer's agreement between the village and the group, covering the parking lot improvements.
- A financial guarantee that the parking lot will be finished, in an amount and form the village approves.
- Proof, to the Village Administrator's satisfaction, that Racine has granted every approval needed for the course and clubhouse work on city land.
- Zoning and planning approvals, applied for and granted under village ordinances, for both the village-owned and the city-owned property.
- A revised path that crosses the south side of the parking lot.
A separate village notice states that the lease can't be signed until all of these are fully satisfied. Condition four applies to the city-owned course as well as the village lot. Racine's July vote counts toward condition three, but the course and clubhouse plans still need village zoning approval.
The village's latest project update, dated the week of September 8, 2026, says the developer was still finalizing documents with Racine and working with the State of Wisconsin on the proposed shoreland and wetland work. Village staff were assembling the applications the developer will need. The developer was also still deciding whether to add another property to the course. Only after that decision, the update says, will the village announce the approval process and its timeline. The project will go before the Plan Commission, the Architectural Review Board, and the Village Board.
The July calendar and where it stands
The project presentation reported in July laid out a fast schedule. Since then, the village has said the timeline can't be set until the property decision is made.
| Milestone | Proposed in July 2026 presentation | Status in village update, week of Sept. 8, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Course construction and shoreline work | Begin summer 2026 | State shoreland and wetland work still in progress; village applications still being assembled |
| Grow-in and soft opening | Summer 2027 | No date announced |
| Limited preview play for locals | Possibly late summer 2027 | No date announced |
| Grand opening | Spring 2028 | No date announced |
| Village approval process | Not specified | Will be announced after the developer decides on the additional property |
The July milestones come from Racine County Eye's account of the presentation, and the status column comes from the village update. Summer 2026 is over and work hasn't started. The research found no later news coverage of a DNR permit decision, the additional property, a signed lease, or a closing date for the current course.
What the village review can still affect
Several questions people have raised about the project come back to the land Wind Point controls and the plans its boards will review.
Pricing for Wind Point golfers. The presentation promised "preferred pricing for Racine and Wind Point locals." The proposed terms Racine considered offered the $24 nine-hole rate for the first two seasons only to City of Racine residents. After that, their rate would be capped at the highest Johnson Park nine-hole rate then in effect, cart included. The terms say nothing about a rate for Wind Point residents, even though the course is in the village.
The parking lot and the path. Earlier public descriptions mentioned a 70-car lot west of the Wind Point Lighthouse and a dog-walking path along the shoreline. The Racine County Eye noted that the July terms didn't clearly say whether the Wind Point lot was still part of the project. The village's own lease still covers it. Its text provides for public use of the parking lot, putting green, and course, and says the clubhouse café and bathrooms are open to the public whenever the clubhouse is open. The rerouted path across the south side of the lot is one of the village's five conditions.
The bluff and the beach. City public works materials treat the shoreline as a public infrastructure problem. The plan calls for a rock revetment along roughly 3,000 feet of shoreline. Its toe would sit above Lake Michigan's ordinary high-water mark, leaving beach between the rock and the water for public walking. The Department of Public Works estimates $1.2 million to $1.3 million for the shoreline protection plus about $150,000 for engineering and permits. The access road off the existing parking lot, estimated in 2020 to need $85,000 in repairs, is still out of service. Final shoreline approval belongs to the Wisconsin DNR and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The birds. A Racine Parks Department summary describes Wind Point and Shoop Park as a recognized birding area, with more than 270 species documented. Michael Burke, president of the Hoy Audubon Society, told the Council the park has drawn more than 280 species because it sits on a migratory route. He asked the Council to "press pause" and consider a living shoreline instead of continuous rock, according to the Racine County Eye. The Parks summary also says bluff-edge vegetation would have to be removed for the stabilization work.
The deed. The 1917 gift from Dr. Clarendon I. Shoop and Ida M. Shoop says the land:
"shall forever be held, maintained and improved by the City of Racine for public park purposes"
Racine's City Attorney, Scott R. Letteney, told the Council that golf has been part of the park for 100 years and that "recreation is legitimate use of public parks," per the Racine County Eye. About two dozen people marched on Lighthouse Drive on April 19, 2026, the 109th anniversary of the donation, to protest the plan.
The published documents don't say how long parts of the course or shoreline would be closed during construction and grow-in.
This fall at Shoop Park and the lighthouse
For now, Troon runs the course at 2026 rates. The planned clubhouse café, the large public putting course, and the walking trail along Lighthouse Drive all exist only in the presentation. The research found no published end date for the 2026 season.
Getting to the lighthouse is its own construction story this fall. The village is rebuilding Four Mile Road and replacing water mains from the 1960s. As of the village's October 1 newsletter, the first binder layer of asphalt was down from Hunt Club Road to Lighthouse Drive, and the water main connection at Valley Trail was set for October 13, with October 14 as the rain date. The village's September 24 schedule lists substantial completion on November 11, 2026, and final completion on November 20, weather permitting. The village's last lighthouse tower tour of the season was October 4.
The next real step for Lighthouse Dunes is the developer's decision on the additional property. After that, the village will publish its approval timeline, and the plans will go to the Wind Point Plan Commission, the Architectural Review Board, and the Village Board.
We've followed the Shoop Park proposal since it first came before the city, and when Wind Point posts its review schedule, we'll go through the plans and explain what each step covers. If you're near Lighthouse Drive and have questions about how the project and the road work may affect your property, Christine and Tony Veranth are happy to walk you through them in a free consultation and home valuation.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
