TALKING STICK GOLF CLUB
REOPENS AFTER RENOVATIONS
The Talking Stick Golf Club, an enterprise of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community (SRPMIC), celebrates the grand reopening after extensive renovations.
Bollinger Consulting Architects (BCA) designed the multiple phases. Their cultural design integration stays true to the “Salt River Way and Style” by creating an immersive cultural experience representative of the O’odham and Piipaash tribes. Having previously worked with Salt River’s Community Development, Engineering and Construction Services and Cultural Resources departments, BCA continually educates themselves on the two tribes.
“The project team really wanted to focus the interior experience on learning about the local culture and land” states, Sean Bollinger of BCA. Clubhouse renovations utilized the existing footprint, preserving the integrity of the building and giving it new life. Bollinger explains, “The fireplaces, the rotunda, the interior beams, even the saguaro ribs from the ceiling of the original restaurant were repurposed into decorative screens in the updated restaurant.”
SRPMIC Tribal Member and President of Maydall Construction, David Dallas, comments, “The cultural corridor that you enter when you first walk in shares our history of our community as well as the region.” O’odham and Piipaash language greets visitors upon entry and continues along the walls offering explanation of the artistry and history. Inspired baskets hang from the ceiling as chandeliers and the sconces are cut to resemble designs of traditional basketry and pottery. Centering on traditional building methods, influences from the olas ki (round house) can be seen throughout the club with hay and broomed textures on the pillars and walls. These methods continue with the vato/mathkyaaly (shade structures) over doorways and the outside patios. Featured next to the Golf Shop entrance is the original Calendar Stick, for which the Talking Stick Golf Club is named. The traditional symbols that were carved by the late Royce Manuel (bot), a SRPMIC Tribal Member, can be seen adorning the walls outside the building. Dallas continues, “We are inviting people into our community and into our home. I think people will appreciate our culture and take home a little knowledge of our people each time they come to visit.”
The expansion of the Clubhouse includes the Talking Stick Golf Club Grill, Golf Shop, event spaces, a full catering kitchen along with separate bride and groom rooms. The Red Mountain Event Hall allows up to 230 guests. When combining with the outdoor space a total of 500 guests can be accommodated. A new marriage ceremony site offers a majestic mountain backdrop with up to 300 guests seated atop pavers arranged in an O’odham basket design.
In addition to the newly renovated Golf Club, brand new installments include a snack bar called the Sandwich House and a world-class Talking Stick Golf Academy in partnership with True Spec Golf club fitting and Vision54 golf instruction.
About the Talking Stick Entertainment District
The Talking Stick Entertainment District is a dynamic area for culture, shopping, dining and entertainment, conveniently located within the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, just 20 minutes from Sky Harbor Airport off the Pima-101 Freeway and Talking Stick Way. Talking Stick is home to Talking Stick Resort, Talking Stick Golf Club, Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, The Pavilions at Talking Stick, Arizona Boardwalk at Talking Stick and an array of entertainment and hospitality options.
For destination information, learn more online at discoversaltriver.com
About the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community
The Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community (SRPMIC) is represented by two distinct Native American tribes; the Akimel O’odham (River People), more commonly known as the Pima and the Xalychidom Piipaash (Upriver People) commonly known as the Maricopa; both share the same cultural values but maintain their unique traditions. Today, more than 11,000 individuals are enrolled Salt River tribal members.
The SRPMIC is bordered by Tempe, Fountain Hills and Mesa and shares a Scottsdale address. The Community owns and operates several successful enterprises including Salt River Materials Group and Saddleback Communication and hospitality enterprises: Talking Stick Resort, Talking Stick Golf Club and Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, all within the Talking Stick Entertainment District, on the northern part of the Community. The culture and the history of the people is an important story to tell and have been interwoven at many of the destination amenities through interior art, building design and landscape.
