The 99-person occupancy limit placed upon the new clubhouse at Newton’s Westwood Golf Course, which is just west of Newton’s City limits, should be lifted soon. The limit was put in place until the city installed a new $1.2 million water main near the clubhouse, to provide enough water pressure for the building’s sprinkler system to operate. Mayor Evelyn George says that the water main is now in place.

“That has now been hooked up. It needs to be tested and inspected by the state of Iowa. Once that’s done, the restriction of a maximum of 99 people in the clubhouse at any given one time.”

The Jasper County Board of Supervisors and the Iowa Department of Inspection, Appeals, and Licensing granted the City a variance so the clubhouse could open. The variance requires the city to hire a trained fire watch officer for large events, to monitor the number of occupants in the clubhouse so it doesn’t exceed 99 people, and to identify hazards that could cause a fire.