There are many ways the game of golf brings people together. Travel, charity fundraisers, buddy trips, tournaments, volunteering, weekly foursomes, family time for nine holes on a long summer evening.
Another way is when a beloved golf course – and the haven it provides to wildlife and as an environmental ecosystem – is threatened with development. People then look to each other for support in embracing a common goal.
Opened in 1997, Druids Glen Golf Club in Covington, Wash., spreads across 376 acres beneath the shadow of Mount Rainier, including the golf course and a habitat for deer, elk, the salmon-bearing Covington Creek and other wetlands with their natural inhabitants.
At the Remington Homeowners Association (RHOA) Annual Meeting held in May of 2025, Parks Legacy, which currently owns Druids Glen, presented to the homeowners their plan for the property. In their proposal, the golf course and clubhouse would be eliminated, and be replaced by 72 houses within a gated community.
Mark Rosenberger has lived in the Remington housing development adjacent to Druids Glen for over 30 years. After he retired from Boeing, he has served as something of a liaison between the RHOA and the golf course for the past dozen years.
In the days following that annual meeting, Rosenberger discussed the Parks Legacy proposal with his neighbors, and they felt they needed to do something. They received approval from the RHOA to officially form the Preserve Druids Glen Committee, which consists of five people, and they began organizing a plan in January of 2026.
“None of us are professionals at any of this,” says Rosenberger, referring to the expertise needed to understand all the environmental codes, permits, land-use restrictions, and all other legal machinations involved. “We are very much a grass roots movement. We understand the positive impact that Druids Glen has on the environment, the ecosystem, and the wildlife, and we’re looking for ways to preserve that for the community. And not just for us, but for future generations.
“Not everyone around here is a golfer, but all of us understand that the golf course provides a tremendous amount of environmental advantages and ‘quality of life’ value to the area.”
Robin Buxton is also on the committee, and she is a non-golfer. She has lived in the Remington community for 35 years and is very passionate about preserving the natural landscape.
“I’ve never seen a business, such as this golf course, that intertwines so seamlessly with the natural environment,” she says. “You don’t have to be a golfer to appreciate what an asset this is to the community and to the natural environment.”
In 1998, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, who owned Druids Glen for over two decades, established an “open space” classification for the property, with the land intended to be a place for recreation, wildlife, and enjoyment. Parks Legacy, the current owners, bought the land from the Allen family in 2019, shortly after Paul passed.
Rosenberger has attended four King County Council meetings, speaking at each of them on behalf of the RHOA. He’s reached out to all the high schools who use Druids Glen for their golf programs.
Druids Glen is located in unincorporated King County, which means the county is the sole authority on land development within unincorporated areas.
“Recently the cities of Maple Valley and Covington have both sent a letter to the King County Council endorsing our efforts to preserve Druids Glen,” Rosenberger said. “I also spoke again at the King County Council Meeting recently, reinforcing our committee’s earlier request that the Council make a complete environmental assessment of the ecosystem benefits Druids Glen provides before they approve any permits for a development.”
Rosenberger and his committee have also reached out to several of the county’s council members, with Councilmember Reagan Dunn, of District 9, officially sending a letter to the King County Department of Local Services (DLS), calling for an environmental review and acknowledging the value that Druids Glen brings to the community and the environment. Councilmember Pete von Reichbauer of District 7 has submitted a similar letter.
Rosenberger’s committee has also communicated with the surrounding towns such as Black Diamond and Enumclaw, along with Maple Valley and Covington; and they have connected with the other HOAs in the area, such as those from Winterwood, Kentlake Highlands, and Sawyer Ridge.
On June 29, 2026, the RHOA’s Preserve Druids Glen Committee hosted a community meeting at nearby Kentlake High School, to provide a summary of the land development application process, share environmental concerns, discuss the necessity by King County for strict zoning and environmental compliance.
A featured speaker at the community meeting was Troy Andrew, CEO of Washington Golf. In his remarks, he encouraged the county to consider the long-term value of preserving the recreational benefits of golf and of Druids Glen.
“Since the pandemic, the sport of golf has experienced unprecedented growth,” Andrew said in his presentation at the meeting. “Participation is at record levels, with women, juniors, and young adults representing the fastest-growing segments of the game. This is the future. If golf courses disappear, then access disappears.”
Andrew also spoke about the health benefits of the game, and of its lifelong participation possibilities.
“Golf courses are community assets,” he continued. “For people directly, but also indirectly through their contributions to the region’s environmental ecosystem. Decisions being made about courses such as Druids Glen are permanent. Future generations will either inherit these recreational spaces or wonder why they were allowed to disappear.”
The Preserve Druids Glen Committee has an ongoing petition, which was started by resident and Druids Glen golfer Sundeep Malhi, for which they are gathering signatures to show the county and city councils the growing support of the community to preserve the golf course and its surrounding habitat.
Grassroots, indeed.
“I think we’ve been successful in getting this information to the county, that this is a significant issue,” he said. “But we’re always looking for help from anyone who is knowledgeable about navigating the county’s public records in matters related to large land developments.”
The golf course is due for some maintenance upgrades, such as a new irrigation system, cart paths, and new sand in the course’s bunkers. This may be one of the reasons the ownership group wants to develop the land, rather than invest any money into the upkeep of the golf course.
“With my involvement with the RHOA, I’ve had a connection with the golf course for many years,” Rosenberger says. “I’ve seen a lot of employees come and go, and I’ve had a very good relationship with all of them. I know they are in somewhat of a state of limbo and uncertainty as to the future, and I try to respect that.”