Through no ‘fault’ of our own, a £1.5 Million indoor tennis facility is on track to ‘serve’ up a treat in Dumfries and Galloway.
Members of the Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Communities Committee will hear about proposals to build a 3-court indoor facility when they meet on Tuesday 28 January.
Tennis Scotland and Sport Scotland have identified our region as one of the six priority areas for investment through a specific fund to create an indoor tennis facility. After an independent options appraisal was carried out (by EKOS), the preferred site for the new facility is King George V Leisure complex in Dumfries.
The project, which will not cost the Council one penny of capital investment, will be two thirds funded by the Transforming Tennis funds / grant, and will be made up by other external funding sources and third-party contributions. Council officers have already held preliminary discussions with potential funding sources and are confident of meeting the one-third funding to build the state-of-the-art indoor tennis facility.
The King George V (KGV) site is operated through a management agreement by Queen of the South FC and has been for several years. This new tennis facility would see Queen of the South FC continue to run the complex and manage bookings and maintenance of the tennis facility. In line with Tennis Scotland guidelines, the KGV site allows invest and develop within existing infrastructure and provide inclusive and accessible changing areas, a reception area and viewing platform and suitable storage facilities.
Councillor Andy Ferguson, who chairs Communities Committee welcomed the news. He said;
“This is fantastic news for tennis players of the present and of course the future. The pathways this will open up and the opportunities school children will get to develop their tennis skills in this facility are second to none. I have full confidence that officers will work with partners to source funding that’ll allow our Council to provide a brand new facility without spending a pound of our own money. What a fantastic boost to the region.”
An open tender procedure will commence to allow interested parties to register an interest in providing an in-kind support or capital contribution.Councillor John Martin, Vice Chair of Communities Committee said;
“The Community Sports Hub model that our Council has adopted for a number of years will see us in good stead for the development and running of this facility. Queens do a good job of running KGV and have invested a lot of time and money in developing the gym area of the complex. WE look forward to working with them on this new tennis facility.”
Papers for the Communities Committee meeting to be held on 28 January can be found at https://dumfriesgalloway.moderngov.co.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=148&MId=5037
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