Capital Region Community Tennis Centre

Tennis in Fredericton, anyone?

Published Saturday November 19th, 2011

By COLIN MACPHAIL
For The Daily Gleaner

The foundation is set for the Capital Region Community Tennis Centre, both literally and figuratively speaking.

Cole Burston/The Daily Gleaner

Racketeers: Tennis Canada and Capital Region Tennis Association officials pose for a photo with young tennis stars at the construction site of Fredericton's new tennis centre Friday. Above, from left, back row, are: Tennis Canada COO Derek Strang, Nick Keschtkar and Tennis Canada vice-president of tennis development Hatem McDadi. In front, from left, are: association chairman David Clark, association vice-president Rose Arsenault and tennis players Phillip Keschtkar and Nils Keschtkar.

The $2.5-million project is ready for crews to start construction at its home at Scotiabank Park South next to the skeleton of the Grant*Harvey Centre and leisure facility, which is also under construction.

After fundraising and forming strategic partnerships, David Clark, president of the Capital Region Tennis Association and the new centre's chairman, was proud to announce they've raised almost $2.2 million with a recent $250,000 investment from Tennis Canada.

Three years ago, the association partnered with Tennis Canada as well as the City of Fredericton and the University of New Brunswick, the landowners, to develop a centre that promotes the sport in an affordable and accessible manner.

"The fact that Tennis Canada believed in our group and are using it as a template to grow tennis from the grassroots level with the focus on kids and families is just absolutely outstanding," said Clark.

The wheelchair-accessible, indoor facility, which will house six courts and administrative offices, is designed to accommodate all types of players and will offer wheelchair tennis.

It will also be one of six centres in the world known for its level of energy efficiency and insulation.

"It's going to be heated by geothermal heat and air-conditioned at a fraction of the cost because this is a new way of doing wellness infrastructure, and sustainability is key," said Clark.

Derek Strang, COO of Tennis Canada, said the state-of-the-art facility will hopefully attract professional events.

"We run satellite circuits in Quebec, but we really don't do anything in the Atlantic region," Strang said.

"We see this as an opportunity of doing this here and maybe in another location as well outside the province to able to do those types of showcasing at the highest level."

On top of the donation of capital, Tennis Canada has also given an operations subsidy to ensure top-level coaching is available at the centre for all players, regardless of income.

"It's about affordability and accessibility. It's what we call 'grow, promote and showcasing the sport,' and for us, this is what this facility helps to provide," Strang said.

"The project for Fredericton is actually a role model for what we're trying to roll out across the country."

Both Strang and Hatem McDadi, Tennis Canada vice-president of tennis development, said there's a need to grow more community-based tennis centres in Canada. With the capability and partners, Fredericton was an easy choice, McDadi said.

"It was a no-brainer to invest here in the sense that it's providing affordable and accessible tennis," McDadi said.

"It's really a great opportunity to provide a healthy lifestyle and activity with the tennis community here."

Tennis Canada is developing 16 similar projects across the country, and it's hopeful the Fredericton venture will inspire other small communities to take part.

"It's going to be a beacon for many communities the size of Fredericton," McDadi said.

"They'll say, 'If we get organized, if we have partnerships, if we have the leadership ... we can do it as well.' "

For Clark, the centre, which is slated for a spring opening, is exactly what's the community and the sport need.

"It's going to have a tremendous impact on the Fredericton community because it goes beyond the capital region," he said.

"This will be the centre for tennis east of Montreal."