To all Tennis Members
As members of the Monash local tennis clubs you may have recently been made aware of Monash Council’s announcement that they have accepted $21m from the State Government to build an 18-court public tennis facility at the Glen Waverley Golf Club on the driving range.
The new tennis centre is supposed to replace the existing 23-court tennis centre in Boroondara (30 kilometres away), currently located on land needed for the North East Link Project (NELP). Council’s contribution to the project will be $5.77M of Monash ratepayers money.
This announcement was made without any prior community consultation and has raised some serious concerns among the tennis community about what the future of local club tennis looks like in Monash. Further investigation by residents, and various club tennis members, has revealed that to get this facility operable it is council’s intention to shut down a number of local tennis clubs and relocate them into this new complex.
In fact, the statement on the Northeast link website reads “The new tennis centre is expected to open in early 2024, with local tennis clubs moving in soon after.”
As residents, tennis members, and also with young children who learn tennis, we have some serious concerns about this proposal which effects everyone:
- Tennis is already well serviced in Monash with tennis courts some of which are underutilised. The amalgamation of local clubs does not require the creation of a new impersonal tennis centre.
- The majority of tennis players prefer the more intimate social environment of their existing clubs rather than that of a large tennis centre. As you know there are many more benefits that just tennis for the current Monash tennis clubs. For example, as you know, Legend Park has a vibrant multicultural membership who have become socially integrated with the community. A large centre will not provide this opportunity for smaller group socialisation.
- Leases for many tennis clubs in Monash are due for renewal later this year. We believe council may use this as leverage to force clubs to close or be given very short leases.
- What will happen to the coaching organisations and the coaches employed by them? They can’t all move to the complex.
- When tournaments are in progress club members and coaches will not be able to access the courts
We are deeply concerned that local Tennis Clubs in Monash will be asked to close if this development goes ahead as planned.
As such, we seek your support in communicating these concerns around the future of local tennis clubs in Monash to all the members of your club by sharing this information with them as well as communicating your concerns to Councillors, see the list of sample questions to ask Council here and who to contact.
You can read further information on this site.