On Saturday, May 18, the Town of Oyster Bay will conduct a ceremony to officially re-name its golf course in honor of Joseph Colby, a resident of Massapequa Park who served as the Town of Oyster Bay’s 56th supervisor. The Honorable Joseph Colby was appointed supervisor in 1977 and was elected to that office five times in the following ten years. He was then elected as a New York State Supreme Court Justice in 1988, a post he held through his retirement from public service in 1992. The unveiling will take place at the main entrance of the course off South Woods Road in Woodbury.
“When the sign for Honorable Joseph Colby Town of Oyster Bay Golf Course is unveiled, it will celebrate an outstanding career in public service,” Supervisor John Venditto said. “Joseph Colby has always had the needs of the public as his top priority and has been widely respected for his innovation and responsiveness. This golf course will now forever bear his name as a tribute to his outstanding legacy.”
The town’s par-70 championship golf course opened to great acclaim in 1989 and is widely considered to be among the finest courses in the country. The site has a distinctively attractive topography and landscape. Once an expansive gold coast estate, the course was designed around the natural contours of the land, including open meadows, dense forested areas and natural water bodies.
Formerly known as the Bruce Estate, the 120-acre parcel of pristine land, now serving as the town’s golf course, was acquired by the town in the 1970s. Although there were many proposed uses for the property, it was Supervisor Colby who thought that a golf course might best showcase and preserve the land.
Even the manor on the estate was kept intact because of its unique and historically significant architecture. The building has since been beautifully refurbished, while still maintaining its architectural character, and serves as the course’s club house, pro-shop, restaurant and catering hall.
Supervisor Venditto said that Colby, now retired with his wife Adelle and living in Florida, has proudly dedicated his life to public service. “His collective efforts have made a positive difference in the Town that is still evident today,” Supervisor Venditto said. “He always cared about the town and its residents and this renaming ceremony, at the golf course recognizing the Honorable Joseph Colby, is the town’s way of showing how much we care about him.”
The ceremony will begin at 11:30 a.m.
