The Essential Facilities for Modern Club Success
NOTE: This is one of the articles written by McMahon Group for the Spring 2026 issue of 𝑪𝑳𝑼𝑩 𝑻𝑹𝑬𝑵𝑫𝑺. Subscribe to 𝑪𝑳𝑼𝑩 𝑻𝑹𝑬𝑵𝑫𝑺 today and have no-limit access to all of the articles in every issue – Subscribe Here
Whether it’s for the pool, fitness center, racquets courts, golf practice areas, or dining rooms and bars, successful clubs prioritize strategic capital investments that are specifically designed to build community and foster member connections.
By Glen Selligman, AIA, Director of Club Architecture, McMahon Group
The clubs experiencing membership waiting lists and unprecedented member satisfaction share a common characteristic: They’ve invested strategically in facilities specifically designed to foster community. These aren’t random amenity additions or isolatedimprovements—they’re carefully considered investments in the physical infrastructure that bring members together, accommodate multiple generations, and create environments where relationships flourish.
Understanding which facilities drive community formation and how they work together is essential for any club leader committed to long-term vitality. Community requires more than good intentions and strong programming—it requires physical infrastructure designed to foster connection.
Here’s what successful clubs are prioritizing in their facilities master plans for areas that have taken on added importance as critical community-building components:
AQUATICS: The Gateway Amenity
Modern aquatics complexes have become the defining multigenerational amenity. The clubs attracting young families have moved beyond single rectangular lap pools to create resort-style environments with distinct zones: lap lanes for serious swimmers, zero-entry splash areas for toddlers, activity pools for family play, dedicated adult areas for socializing, and wellness features like hot tubs and cold-plunge pools.
These aren’t just swimming facilities—they’re all-day gathering places where parents supervise children while socializing with friends, grandparents teach grandchildren to swim, teens congregate and the entire membership naturally comes together. The pool becomes the “summer living room” of the club, and often the first amenity that young families evaluate when considering membership.
PHOTO COURTESY BOCA WEST COUNTRY CLUB
Modern aquatics complexes have become the defining multigenerational amenity. These aren’t just swimming facilities—they’re all-day gathering places where the entire membership naturally comes together. The pool becomes the “summer living room” of the club, and often the first amenity that young families evaluate when considering membership.
The investment in comprehensive aquatics is substantial—often $5-$15 million, depending on scope and market—but the return in membership attraction, retention, and daily engagement is equally significant. Clubs that have made this investment consistently report it as transformational for family participation and community building.
FITNESS and WELLNESS: From Obligation to Destination
Today’s members—particularly millennials entering their peak joining years—view fitness as integralto lifestyle and social identity. Modern club fitness centers rival commercial gyms in equipment quality,
while adding what those facilities cannot: community and programming built around group-fitness classes that create regular touchpoints for members with shared interests.
Wellness has expanded beyond cardio equipment to include dedicated spaces for functional training, recovery areas with massage and bodywork services, meditation rooms, and comprehensive spa facilities. The most progressive clubs create full wellness journeys—morning workouts, recovery sessions, healthy lunch, golf or tennis—all without leaving
the property, and all in the company of friends and fellow members.
PHOTO COURTESY ADDISON RESERVE COUNTRY CLUB
Today’s members—particularly millennials entering their peak joining years—view fitness as integral to lifestyle and social identity. Clubs investing significantly in fitness and wellness find that these spaces become daily-use amenities that drive consistent engagement far beyond what traditional club amenities achieve.
Supporting this requires substantial infrastructure: large, naturally lit fitness floors (typically a minimum of 3,000 to 5,000 sq. ft.), dedicated studio spaces for group fitness (1,000-1,500 sq. ft. each), locker rooms as comfortable transition spaces, and wellness areas that invite lingering, rather than quick, visits.
The clubs investing significantly in fitness and wellness—often $3-$8 million for comprehensive facilities—find that these spaces become daily-use amenities that drive consistent engagement far beyond what traditional club amenities achieve. The 6 a.m. spin class creates bonds that extend to dinner reservations. The yoga community becomes a social network within the club.
RACQUET SPORTS: Accommodating Growth
Pickleball’s explosive growth caught many clubs unprepared. But those that moved quickly to add dedicated courts found themselves with instant programming, social groups, and league play. Tennis has also experienced its own renaissance, with clubs investing in covered or indoor courts that can extend the season, along with improved surfaces, upgraded lighting, and—most critically—enhanced social spaces surrounding the courts.
PHOTO COURTESY LAREDO COUNTRY CLUB
For racquet sports, the post-match gathering space—with patio seating, perhaps a bar, and certainly shade—is now as important as the courts themselves. That’s where community-building happens.
The post-match gathering space—with patio seating, perhaps a bar, and certainly shade—is now as important as the courts themselves. That’s where community-building happens, through conversation after the game, scheduling the next match, andrelationships that expand from being tennis partners to dinner companions.
Forward-thinking clubs are developing comprehensive racquet-sports facilities that might include four to eight pickleball courts, six to 12 tennis courts (as a mix of indoor and outdoor), perhaps padel, a dedicated pro shop and locker facilities, and integrated social spaces. The investment ranges from $2-$10 million, depending on whether courts are outdoor-only, covered, or fully enclosed. But in all cases, the programming density and community formation that these facilities enable justify the cost.
GOLF PRACTICE FACILITIES: Community Through Improvement
Increasingly, the traditional golf model—foursomes playing 18 holes—is now being supplemented by practice-centered engagement. Modern players want to improve systematically, influenced by online instruction and enabled by technology like launch monitors and video analysis.
Forward-thinking clubs invest heavily in practice infrastructure: expanded driving ranges with covered hitting bays; short-game areas replicating on-course conditions; putting courses functioning as both practice facilities and social spaces; and indoor simulators that extend the season.
PHOTO COURTESY FIELD CLUB OF OMAHA
The golf practice facility, once a solitary experience, becomes a gathering place—but only when clubs invest in making these spaces comfortable, well-maintained, and equipped to support extended stays.
These facilities create their own community. Regular users develop friendships. Golfers with the same instructor form practice groups. Simulator leagues provide winter competition and camaraderie. The practice facility, once a solitary experience, becomes a gathering place—but only when clubs invest in making these spaces comfortable, well- maintained, and equipped to support extended stays.
The investment in comprehensive practice facilities—$2-$8 million for covered hitting bays, a short- game complex, and indoor simulators—represents a different value proposition than course improvements. While a course renovation primarily benefits existing golfers, practice facilities attract new participants, support programming, enable year-round engagement, and create community around skill development.
THE BAR: The Social Catalyst
If there’s one space that serves as the primary catalyst for spontaneous connection, it’s a great bar— not a formal cocktail lounge, but an approachable, visible, comfortably casual space positioned in a place where members naturally flow through.
The best club bars share common characteristics: located at or near the club entry, ensuring critical mass; excellent sight lines, lowering the social barrier; comfortable seating in multiple configurations; quality, accessible food; and an energized but conversational atmosphere.
PHOTO COURTESY GREY OAKS COUNTRY CLUB
If there’s one space that serves as the primary catalyst for spontaneous connection, it’s a great bar that feels like it belongs to the members.
Most importantly, they feel like they belong to the members. Members develop preferred seats. Bartenders know preferences. Informal rituals develop—Friday evenings, post-tennis Thursdays, Saturday- and Sunday-game gatherings. These patterns create social ecosystems where connections happen organically.
Clubs often underinvest in this space, treating it as an afterthought rather than recognizing it as perhaps the single-most important community- building space in the facility. A well-designed bar— with proper location, sight lines, seating variety, and atmosphere—might represent $500,000-$2 million in investment, but the return in member engagement, dining revenue, and community formation far exceeds the cost.
DINING: Multiple Venues, Multiple Modes
The traditional single, formal dining room no longer serves modern social patterns. Today’s members want choice: sometimes formal, often casual; sometimes planned, often spontaneous; sometimes adults-only, often family-inclusive.
Leading clubs now offer multiple dining venues, each with a distinct character: a formal dining room for special occasions; a casual bistro or grille for everyday use; an outdoor patio for seasonal enjoyment; and a quick-service café for coffee and light meals. This diversity accommodates different needs and creates multiple community contexts.
Leading clubs now offer multiple dining venues, each with a distinct character. This diversity accommodates different needs and provides multiple opportunities for members to interact throughout the day and week.
PHOTO COURTESY WILDERNESS COUNTRY CLUB
The key insight: Multiple venues provide multiple opportunities for members to interact throughout the day and week. The member stopping for morning coffee, returning for lunch, and coming back for dinner has three chances to encounter friends. The single dining-room model sees that member once per week.
Developing multiple dining venues requires significant investment—$3-$10 million, depending on scope—but clubs that have made this transformation consistently report dramatic increases in food-and- beverage participation, member satisfaction, and the intangible quality of daily club engagement.
YEAR-ROUND Engagement
Weather shouldn’t dictate whether community happens. Clubs thriving in northern climates—and increasingly those in extreme heat—have invested in climate-controlled facilities maintaining twelve- month engagement: indoor tennis and pickleball courts, enclosed pools, comprehensive fitness facilities, year-round dining venues, golf simulators and indoor practice areas.
PHOTO COURTESY INTERLACHEN COUNTRY CLUB
Clubs that maintain year-round programming keep members connected, engaged, and unlikely to lookelsewhere for their social and recreational needs.
The return isn’t just twelve-month utilization— it’s twelve-month community maintenance. Relationships that go dormant for months never fully deepen. Habits that pause often don’t resume. Clubs that maintain year-round programming keep members connected, engaged, and unlikely to look elsewhere for their social and recreational needs.
The investment in year-round facilities is substantial—often $10- $25 million for comprehensive indoor amenities—but clubs in seasonal climates that have made this commitment report transformation in member retention, dues stability, and competitive positioning. They’re no longer competing just with other clubs; they’re offering value that no seasonal alternative can match.
The INTEGRATION Imperative
Here’s where planning becomes critical: All of these elements must work together. The pool shouldn’t be isolated in a far corner, but visible from and connected to dining and social spaces. The fitness center shouldn’t be a basement afterthought, but an attractive prominent facility. The bar shouldn’t be hidden, but positioned as the crossroads of the club.
Whether they are renovations or new construction, the most successful projects treat the entire facility as an integrated community platform. Circulation paths maximize member interaction—you shouldn’t be able to walk from your car to the golf shop without encountering other members. Visual connectivity lets members see activity happening throughout the club, encouraging participation. Flexible spaces allow programming to evolve as member interests shift.
PHOTO COURTESY THE LANDINGS GOLF & ATHLETIC CLUB
This integration is why comprehensive master planning matters. While adding pickleball courts is good, developing a racquet-sports complex with social spaces, pro shop, and connectivity to dining creates community. While installing new fitness equipment is fine, creating a wellness center with fitness, group exercise, recovery, and spa services flowing together intuitively builds lasting engagement.
The physical relationships between spaces matter as much as the spaces themselves. The bar that’s visible from the entry and adjacent to dining creates different energy than one hidden in a back hallway. The fitness center with windows overlooking activity areas invites participation differently than one isolated in a basement. The pool complex connected to casual dining and social spaces functions fundamentally differently than one separated from other amenities.
Whether they are renovations or new construction, the most successful projects treat the entire facility as an integrated community platform. This integration is why comprehensive master planning matters— the physical relationships between spaces matter as much as the spaces themselves.
Successful integration requires thinking about member flow throughout the property: Where do they enter? What do they see first? What natural paths do they take? What spaces do they encounter, rather than having to seek out? Where do different groups naturally congregate? How do families experience the club differently than couples or singles?
It also requires considering temporal integration, taking into account how the club functions at different times of day, different days of the week, and in different seasons. The morning fitness crowd should flow naturally to coffee service. The after-school children’s programming should connect easily to early dining options. The post-golf gathering should transition seamlessly to evening socializing.
The Return on Community Investment
Collectively, addressing all of the facilities described in this article would represent a significant capital commitment—often $20-$50 million for comprehensive modernization at a full-service club. That’s a daunting figure, and one that requires careful financial planning, phased implementation, and strong member communication.
But the return on these investments, properly planned and executed, is substantial and measurable, through payoffs that can includemembership waiting lists, dues increases that meet or exceed inflation, strong food-and-beverage participation, capital-fee support, high member- satisfaction scores, and operational sustainability.
The energy in a club with modern, well-integrated facilities designed for community is palpable. The vitality and sense of a club that’s alive, relevant, and essential to its members’ lives is what distinguishes thriving clubs from struggling ones.
More fundamentally, these investments purchase something that cannot be easily quantified but is unmistakably valuable: vitality. The energy in a club with modern, well-integrated facilities designed for community is palpable. You see it in the parking lot at all hours. You hear it in the bar and dining rooms. You feel it in the locker rooms, on the courts and around the pool. You measure it in the ages represented, the families that are participating, the friendships that are forming, and the traditions that are building.
PHOTO COURTESY THE COUNTRY CLUB OF VIRGINIA
That vitality—that sense of a club that’s alive, relevant, and essential to its members’ lives—is what distinguishes thriving clubs from struggling ones. It’s what creates waiting lists. It’s what allows clubs to maintain or increase dues. It’s what ensures that the next generation of members is already present, already engaged, and already committed.
The Strategic Imperative
Understanding which facilities build community is essential, but understanding how they work together is what separates good planning from great execution. The clubs that have transformed their competitive position didn’t just add amenities—they reimagined their entire physical plant as an integrated platform for community formation.
Instead of asking, “What facility should we add?” the question was, “What experience do we want to create?” They planned not in terms of individual projects but in terms of comprehensive environments. They invested not to maintain adequacy, but to achieve excellence in community building.
This is the strategic imperative for club leaders: to see facilities not as collections of separate amenities but as integrated infrastructure for the essential human experience of belonging. To invest not just in maintaining what exists but in creating what members need. To build not just for today’s membership, but for generations to come.
That’s what strategic facility investment achieves. That’s what builds community. And that’s what creates clubs that thrive.
About Glen Selligman, AIA
Mr. Selligman joined McMahon Group in 1993, and since then has participated in the planning and design of more than 200 clubs. He directs all aspects of the clubhouse planning operations for club existing conditions reports, architectural plan reviews, facilities master plans, club improvement programs and golf course maintenance facilities. Glen takes a personal role in the design of every McMahon project and coordinates the work of our team of architects, engineers, designers and illustrators.
Glen is a graduate of the University of Arkansas School of Architecture, is a licensed architect and a member of the American Institute of Architects.