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Common Bonds

For these eight soft-court award winners, construction excellence is the tie that binds.

By Peter Francesconi

The latest outdoor soft-court winners of the Racquet Sports Industry/American Sports Builders Association 2006 Distinguished Facility-of-the-Year Awards have quite a few things in common. For instance, all eight of these projects used soft-court material from Lee Tennis. All eight also opted for the water-saving advantages of subsurface irrigation. And all made use of the accuracy provided by laser-guided grading to level the surfaces.

In what might be yet another hopeful sign for the tennis business, seven of these eight projects were new construction. (The lone upgrade, four courts at the Hillsboro Club in Hillsboro, Fla., is a long-term project that will eventually include all 10 of the club’s courts.) The number of courts in these projects ranged from the two red clay courts at The Bath Club in Miami Beach to the 13 courts at the Boulevard Club in Vero Beach, Fla., but most involved creating six or eight new courts, and many included a “stadium” court.

Again, Florida was well-represented in this group of winners, with six of the eight projects in the Sunshine State. The other facilities were in Kentucky and Georgia. And only two court-building companies were involved in these winning projects — five were built by Welch Tennis Courts Inc. of Sun City, Fla., and the other three were from Fast-Dry Courts Inc. of Pompano Beach, Fla.

Five of the projects involved the installation of lighting. And player and spectator amenities came in for quite a lot of attention. All these winners allow for player seating near or next to the courts, most include viewing areas for spectators, and most have pro shops, restaurants or snack bars, restrooms, and nearby shade shelters (including custom-built redwood canopies for the Club at Olde Stone in Alvaton, Ky.).

But despite the many similar details of these eight winners, the most important thing they have in common is their construction excellence, and a finished product that players and facility owners and managers can be proud of.

The Bath Club

Miami Beach, Fla. (Nominated by Fast-Dry Courts Inc., Pompano Beach, Fla.)
Number of Courts: 2
Architect/Engineer: Turner Construction
General & Specialty Contractor: Fast-Dry Courts
Surface: Lee Tennis American Red Clay
Subsurface Irrigation: Lee Tennis
Windscreens: J.A. Cissel
Nets, Center Straps, Anchors: BP International
Net Posts, Line Tapes: Lee Tennis
Trench Drain: Zurn Industries

Boulevard Club

Vero Beach, Fla.
(Nominated by Fast-Dry Courts Inc., Pompano Beach, Fla.)
Number of Courts: 13
Architect/Engineer/Contractor: Fast-Dry Courts
Surface: Lee Tennis Hydroblend
Subsurface Irrigation: Lee Tennis
Windscreens: J.A. Cissel
Lighting: RLS TE-2000
Nets, Center Straps, Anchors: BP International
Net Posts, Line Tapes: Lee Tennis
Trench Drain: Zurn Industries

Center Court Ridge at Reunion Resort and Club

Kissimmee, Fla.
(Nominated by Welch Tennis Courts Inc., Sun City, Fla.)
Number of Courts: 6
General & Specialty Contractor: Welch Tennis Courts
Surface: Lee Tennis Hydroblend
Subsurface Irrigation: Welch Tennis HydroGrid
Fencing: Ameristar

Hillsboro Club

Hillsboro, Fla.
(Nominated by Fast-Dry Courts Inc., Pompano Beach, Fla.)
Number of Courts: 4
Architect/Engineer/Contractor: Fast-Dry Courts
Surface: Lee Tennis Hydroblend
Subsurface Irrigation: Lee Tennis
Windscreens: BP International
Nets, Center Straps, Anchors: BP International
Net Posts, Line Tapes: Lee Tennis
Trench Drain: Zurn Industries

Tivoli Lakes

Boynton Beach, Fla.
(Nominated by Welch Tennis Courts Inc., Sun City, Fla.)
Number of Courts: 6
General & Specialty Contractor: Welch Tennis Courts
Surface: Lee Tennis Hydroblend
Subsurface Irrigation: Welch Tennis HydroGrid
Lighting: RLS TE-2000
Windscreens: J.A. Cissel
Fencing: Ameristar

Ellis Methvin Tennis Center

Plant City, Fla.
(Nominated by Welch Tennis Courts Inc., Sun City, Fla.)
Number of Courts: 8 (4 Har-Tru, 4 cushioned hard)
General & Specialty Contractor: Welch Tennis Courts
Surface: Lee Tennis Hydroblend/DecoTurf
Subsurface Irrigation: Welch Tennis HydroGrid
Fencing: Ameristar
Windscreens: BP International
Canopies: Creighton Awning

The Club at River Forest

Forsythe, Ga.
(Nominated by Welch Tennis Courts Inc., Sun City, Fla.)
Number of Courts: 6
General & Specialty Contractor: Welch Tennis Courts
Surface: Lee Tennis Hydroblend
Subsurface Irrigation: Welch Tennis HydroGrid
Windscreens: J.A. Cissel
Nets, Net Posts: BP International
Lighting: LSI
Wood Fencing: Herren Tennis

The Club at Olde Stone

Alvaton, Ky.
(Nominated by Welch Tennis Courts Inc., Sun City, Fla.)
Number of Courts: 6
General & Specialty Contractor: Welch Tennis Courts
Surface: Lee Tennis Hydroblend
Subsurface Irrigation: Welch Tennis HydroGrid
Lighting: LSI Courtsider
Fencing: Ameristar
Windscreens: J.A. Cissel

See all articles by Peter Francesconi

About the Author

Peter Francesconi is editorial director of RSI magazine.

From the March 2007 issue
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