By Brendan Rees
Hampton Park Tennis Club could be demolished and relocated as part of a radical Casey Council draft master-plan for Robert Booth Reserve.
Cairns Road Reserve has been earmarked as a proposed new site for the tennis club and its 200 members; however Casey Council is lobbying the Federal and State Government for $6-8 million in funding to secure a new clubhouse and courts.
Club president Ron Lamb says the current facilities at the Somerville Road site are in badly need of an upgrade.
“The club’s been there over 50 years with the same sort of amenities, just getting a bit beyond it now,” he said.
Mr Lamb said the club was excited to move to Cairns Road Reserve which would boost its membership and resolve a lack of car parking: “It gives it a central location too; we’re hoping to get people over from Lyndhurst way and Lynbrook.”
“We’re looking forward to the move because it’ll mean new facilities and plus more courts hopefully.”
“We’re stuck in a little corner and we sort of can’t move anywhere. It’s just not contusive to expanding, that’s the main problem,” he said.
“It’s been passed by council to do it so it’s just a matter of time I think of getting it done.”
At their 19 February meeting councillors voted for the $11 million draft master-plan of Robert Booth Reserve to be placed on public exhibition from 25 February to 24 March to gather feedback from the community.
Councillor Wayne Smith expressed his excitement for the master-plan, saying it’s a “win-win for everyone.”
“It’s timely that we put some money into it because it’s ageing,” he said.
“It’s just a matter of coming up with the funds to do the tennis. We’ve got the funds for everything else but not the tennis relocated.
“We’re lobbing federal and state governments to come on board and support the tennis component,” Cr Smith said.
He said the State Government had committed to providing $3 million for the redevelopment of the pavilion to cater for all user groups including netball change rooms.
When asked when works would begin, Cr Smith said “I suspect it will start whenever the state money can come through. Just because there’s election promise, doesn’t mean it happens in the first year.”
Under the plan, the existing netball courts would be demolished and replaced with new competition netball courts and floodlighting, as well as a new player shelter shed and a new half netball court for warm ups – which would be installed at the current tennis courts.
The Hampton Park Progress Association which owns Robert Booth Reserve, declined to comment to Star News.
Also proposed in the master-plan is:
• A new playground and picnic area
• Improved cycling paths,
• Improved car parking and entrances
• Retention of existing trees
• A new CFA training track with gated access to replace existing track behind the pavilion
• A new secure store for turf wicket maintenance equipment
• Removal of the northern panel of fencing of the practice nets to widen the pedestrian access between the practice nets and the oval perimeter fence.
