About 400 Rancho Santa Fe Association members attended “Vision to Reality” on Dec. 9, a social gathering to celebrate the long-awaited clubhouse renovation that will kick off early next year. The vision for the Rancho Santa Fe Golf Club clubhouse and restaurant remodel is that once it’s improved, it will become the place to go for everybody in the Ranch, a “beautiful” central hub for all to enjoy, not just golf club members.
Construction on the clubhouse is slated to begin on Jan. 15, 2026, with a grand reopening set for August. The renovation will include major structural repairs to the 18-year-old clubhouse building and a refresh of the restaurant, which the Association shares in the cost of running with the golf club.
Attendees at the event got to check out the latest renderings, which showed off an opened-up floor plan set around a central circular bar, the expanded outdoor patio, a new entrance in the lobby, and all new flooring, furniture and fixtures.
A rendering of the updated dining room and bar in the RSF Gold Club restaurant. (Courtesy RSF Association)
The roof will be replaced, but the historic wood beams will remain inside. The color palette draws from the surrounding natural environment, and the views of those surroundings will be improved with new sliding glass walls that will open out to the golf course.
Christmas Eve, Dec. 24, will be the restaurant’s last day of service before the renovation. During construction, the golf club will still host events for members and serve food out of the snack bar.
At its Dec. 4 meeting, the RSF Association board approved the funding plan for the $9.4 million project, which will be completed without any adjustments to member assessments.
According to Association CFO Chris Lake, the project will be funded with about $3.9 million of general services operating cash, investments and future operating profit. The remaining $5.5 million will come from a construction loan from First Citizens Bank.
The Rancho Santa Fe Association hosted a kickoff party for its clubhouse renovation project on Dec. 9. (Sirena Briant)
A rendering of the updated dining room and bar in the RSF Gold Club restaurant. (Courtesy RSF Association)
The Rancho Santa Fe Association hosted a kickoff party for its clubhouse renovation project on Dec. 9. (Sirena Briant)
The Rancho Santa Fe Association hosted a kickoff party for its clubhouse renovation project on Dec. 9. (Sirena Briant)
A rendering of the updated Crosby Room in the Rancho Santa Fe Golf Club Clubhouse. (Courtesy RSF Association)
A rendering of the updated clubhouse lobby and new restaurant entrance. (Courtesy RSF Association)
Show Caption
1 of 6
The Rancho Santa Fe Association hosted a kickoff party for its clubhouse renovation project on Dec. 9. (Sirena Briant)
As Lake explained, it is a cash flow loan not secured by any real property—it is a five-year term loan with interest-only payments during the first year and an amortization period of 10 years. The interest rate is fixed at 5.51%, which Lake said was the most competitive bid the Association received. The loan is anticipated to be paid off in its entirety by 2034.
“It’s a very, very generous, great loan for us, especially because we’re not pledging any real assets other than cash flow to the bank,” RSF Association Board President David Gamboa said. “That’s a reflection of the entire family’s good faith and credit.”
Lake said the Association’s funding plan for the capital project is to maintain at least $2 million in operating cash and, that day, the board also voted unanimously to increase the Association’s line of credit with First Citizens from $2 million to $5 million. In the past, the credit line has been intended for emergency purposes: “We’ve never used that,” remarked Director Courtney Silberberg, who served on the finance committee for two years before being elected to the board this year. “We’re very conscious of the monies that come in and go out.”
Lake said it was prudent to increase the line of credit as they are starting to tap into their investments and use some of the operating cash. His model includes an option of using the line of credit to pay off the loan five years out. The line of credit will expire on April 28, 2027, and will need to be renewed every two years.
As the board members said, the goal is for the Association to steward its funds “safely and wisely” for the benefit of the entire membership.
“It’s very important for the family to know that this has been done judiciously, it’s been a lot of effort and time,” said Director Mark Simpson, who complimented the Association staff for their “incredible” work in getting the project going. “It’s been a long time coming, I think we’re all going to really enjoy it.”