Malcolm Gladwell (author and reporter for the New Yorker) has an entertaining and informative podcast focused on the unjust public subsidies for fancy private golf clubs, particularly in Los Angeles.  He talks about how much land they take up within the urban landscape that is otherwise starved for public parks.

Perhaps more damning, he discusses at length the tax subsidies these exclusive, wealthy country clubs receive, primarily due to Prop 13.  At one point, he estimates that one of these expansive golf courses is sitting on land worth about $9 billion, which would have triggered property taxes of $90 million per year.  But under Prop 13, the country club pays $200,000 per year.

An admitted golf-hater, Gladwell would ‘gladly’ see these spaces converted to public use.

My only quibble with his piece is that while urban Los Angeles is park-starved, it actually has a huge amount of open space, from the beach to the nearby mountains.  Sure, not everyone has easy means to get to these locations, but they are otherwise transit-accessible and beautiful places that most cities around the country would love to have.

The podcast is definitely worth your time, whether you like golf or not.