For June Wilbert, the ninth hole at Dauphin Highlands held a special place in her heart. It was where her son, David, had proposed to his wife, Annie. After David died at 50, a memorial bench on the course became a place where his family could remember him. They also held a tournament in his honor every year.
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On the course’s final day, June returned to the bench one last time. Soon, the course will make way for a massive data center project, but the memories her family made there will remain. For June and others like her, losing Dauphin Highlands means saying goodbye to a place that holds a part of their lives.
Dauphin Highlands Golf Course in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, hosted its final round on October 12, bringing more than three decades of public golf to an end. Since opening in 1995, the course has given local golfers a place to play, unwind, and make memories. Now, the 228-acre property is set for a very different future.
Harrisburg I LLC purchased the land for $45 million, with Texas-based developer Corscale planning to build a proposed $10.5 billion AI data center campus. For the golfers who called Dauphin Highlands their home course, the sale marks the end of an era, even as plans for the site’s next chapter move forward.
The quiet greens once brought friends together for a round of golf and gave beginners the thrill of their first hole-in-one. Now, the course will be replaced by the computing infrastructure needed to power modern technology and artificial intelligence.
“We were praying and cheering that it wouldn’t happen,” June said per WGAL. “But God had other plans, so we respect those plans, and we’re sad for this time to come. But they can’t take away the memories that we have.”
More than 300 golfers reportedly headed to Dauphin Highlands on Monday, sharing stories and looking back on the memories they created on this beautiful 18-hole course overlooking the Susquehanna River.
77-year-old Tim Birney, Dauphin Highlands’ director of instruction since 2012, was there for the course’s opening on Labor Day in 1995 and returned for its final day. He played in the last group alongside Fred DeCock, who had joined him on opening day, and Joe Navin. They played toward flagless holes, as golfers in earlier groups had taken the flags home as souvenirs.
“That’s OK,” Birney joked. “I know where the greens are from my 30 years of playing here.”
Financial pressure behind the sale
The Dauphin County General Authority listed the property for sale in 2025 for more than $45 million while handling approximately $13 million in debt. The eventual sale offered a way to address those financial obligations, although the consequences stretch beyond the authority’s balance sheet.
For golfers who regularly play the course, the sale means losing a familiar and valued facility. Bill Love designed Dauphin Highlands and developed a reputation for its layout, course conditions, and maintenance.
Doc Greenlee, who grew up playing there, described the facility’s quality in comments to WGAL-TV.
“This is like a top-tier public course. Like, you can compare this to a lot of other areas in Pennsylvania … this is up there on layout and conditions and the way they take care of it. So, it’s going to be a little bit of a shame to see this go.”
Greenlee also spoke about what the course meant to him personally.
“I owe a lot to this course, and it’s sad to see it go, but it’s one of the best in the area by far. It’s bittersweet. It’s kind of like a funeral out here.”
His comments capture a consequence of redevelopment that financial figures alone cannot measure: the loss of a place where people built routines, relationships, and lasting memories.
A major technology project is planned
Corscale’s proposed Highlands data center campus represents a major investment in the region. The developer has offered Swatara Township a $120 million community benefits package, with construction potentially beginning in 2027 and completion expected in 2028, pending the necessary approvals and permits.
Birney told WGAL that test drilling had already begun, but that didn’t stop him and his friends from enjoying one last round on Monday.
While the project could bring significant economic benefits to the region, Dauphin Highlands has already closed. The community has lost a public golf course before construction of the proposed data center has even begun.
The closure reflects a broader trend as demand for AI computing power influences land-use decisions beyond the technology industry. Data centers require large sites and supporting infrastructure, making properties previously used for other purposes attractive to developers.
A similar shift is happening on the West Coast, where California’s former Delta View Golf Course is being redeveloped into the Perseus Data Center. Avaio Digital Partners bought the 76-acre property in Pittsburg, California, to build a 340,000-square-foot facility backed by an $800 million investment. Like Dauphin Highlands, the course is giving way to a major technology project as demand for computing power grows.
That doesn’t automatically make every such conversion a poor decision. The Dauphin County General Authority faced significant debt, and the sale offered a way to address its financial obligations. The proposed development could also bring economic benefits to the surrounding area.
However, the trade-off deserves scrutiny. Public golf courses provide recreational spaces that can be difficult to replace, particularly as land becomes more expensive or is earmarked for commercial development.
Dauphin Highlands’ final round therefore marks more than the closure of a golf course. It highlights the competing priorities communities face as they balance financial pressures, economic development, and the preservation of public amenities.
The data center may ultimately bring significant investment to the region, but for golfers who played Dauphin Highlands for decades, that future comes at a cost. A course that had been part of their community since 1995 is gone for good.