I've been working on this project over the past several years and perhaps this is its moment.

It gives me great pleasure to present this for public consideration as it works so well on so many levels. I think "Rounds" can be a social hub for the city as well as provide challenging sports and recreation for kids and adults alike.

Most of these games are games of skill and technique in which the kindly grandma can often defeat the burly truckdriver. I know from experience, as I played bocce on the Martini Shiners team when I first moved to St. Helena.

I've heard the wails of "nothing to do" and "nothing for the kids to do" for years now. Perhaps that pent-up energy can charge forth to rally behind this project.

I'd like to see several charity events happening at the site, plus the golf team practicing on the golf simulators, and summer jobs for kids. Not to mention the fun of watching the sun go down behind the mountains on a summer night – after you just missed a 2 foot putt on the Bale Mill hole. Candlepin Bowling will be a whole new experience.

"Rounds" would take up less than half of the property. Meanwhile, I'll try to find a developer in the area with the resources and track record necessary.

Another note: This proposal is really TWO PHASES that don't have to be tied together.

1. Building a great facility that the entire community will enjoy for years and years; and provide on-going revenue for the city.

2. The Bigger Picture of having a professional bocce team from St. Helena and participating in the "bocce channel." I like to think that these could be eventually be worth a great deal and provide more prestigious events for the city. Perhaps the city could be an equity partner in the project rather than simply leasing the land...

Thanks for your support and please email me your comments.

Robert Battaile

battaile@calexas.com