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Congressman Gerry Connolly sent a letter to President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner encouraging them to hold their “golf summit” at the Laurel Hill Golf Club in the Lorton area of Fairfax County.

The Laurel Hill course, run by the Fairfax County Park Authority, is on the tract of land that formally housed the Lorton Reformatory and currently includes the Lorton Workhouse Arts Center and the memorial to the suffragettes who were imprisoned there.

Here is the text of the letter:

Dear Mr. President and Mr. Speaker,

I am glad to see that both of you are going to have a golf outing this weekend in an effort to find common ground on some of the critical issues facing our nation today.  Although I’m not a golfer, I am told that the game of golf provides a time-honored opportunity for participants to meet on neutral ground and strengthen relationships.

On the outside chance you haven’t already decided on a course to play, I want to recommend a wonderful public golf course in the Lorton area of Fairfax County, Virginia, that would provide a great venue for you to escape the heated rhetoric of Washington for some relaxed and meaningful dialogue.

 The Laurel Hill Golf Club is a short-drive from the Nation’s Capital.  It was ranked 13^th in Golfweek’s 50 best municipal courses of 2011 and Golf Digest rated it as one of the top 10 new courses of 2008.  Northern Virginia golfers assure me, and I want to assure you, that Laurel Hill would provide plenty of challenge for golfers of your caliber.

A visit to that golf facility, run by the Fairfax County Park Authority, would also give you an opportunity to see how federal legislation, coupled with strong community involvement, can take an outdated eyesore like the former Lorton Reformatory, a federally-established prison, and turn it into a facility that includes the premiere golf course, the Lorton Workhouse Arts Center, a memorial to the suffragettes who were imprisoned there, and other similar uses that maintain the character and history of the location.

Despite the often-heated rhetoric of today’s political arena, I applaud your decision to meet on the golf course because it shows your commitment to overcoming differences of opinion to find workable solutions.

I hope you will choose Laurel Hill for your golf match, but wherever you end up playing, I wish you the best of luck in your discussions.  Have a good round!

Sincerely,

Gerald E. Connolly