An Okotoks group is looking for a new location to score love.
The Okotoks Tennis Club has grown significantly over the years, and the organization is on the hunt for new land to build five outdoor tennis courts, a clubhouse and an indoor facility.
“We’re looking at other options to see where we could go in the future,” said club president Birgitte Leblic. “You’ve got to be proactive and do your long-term planning, and that’s what we’re doing now.”
The change is being driven by the impending water pipeline coming from Calgary, which is slated to tie into the existing north reservoir, below three current tennis courts on Tower Hill adjacent to Good Shepherd School. It’s the primary location of the Okotoks Tennis Club, and where they had hoped to build a clubhouse.
Members of the club have been meeting with Okotoks community services director Susan Laurin to discuss their options, but were told they couldn’t build at their current location.
“The Town asked them to delay construction because we don’t want them to put in something this year they have to rip out next year when we’re tying all those waterlines into the reservoir,” said Laurin. “They’re on top of the reservoir so we have to wait for the construction project to finish, because we would really hate for them to make an investment and then us tear it down.”
Okotoks engineering manager Marley Oness said it’s not just the waterline from Calgary that will cause disruption on Tower Hill.
“There are two things driving changes at the reservoir,” said Oness. “The pipleline, and the age of the infrastructure up there. It needs to be brought up to a newer condition at this point.”
He said the timing isn’t clear on commencing construction, as a detailed design has not been completed at this time. The Town is still investigating exactly what kind of upgrades need to be made to the decades-old reservoir, he said.
It’s also difficult to pinpoint how long the project could take, because it depends on the amount of excavation that needs to be done and the extent of work required, he said.
“I think there will be an impact on the tennis club, but when and how much of an impact, it’s just too early to say,” said Oness.
The uncertainty is part of what has the Okotoks Tennis Club searching for land to build a new facility, said Leblic.
“We don’t even know if we’re going to have courts next year – not good,” she said. “I know the Town is working with us to minimize disruption, but we’re not sure what’s going to happen.”
There are two tennis courts located at Wilson Park, on Wilson Street, one block east of Veterans Way. The problem with those, she said, is they have been designated as outdoor pickleball courts and the lines crisscross with tennis court lines, which can cause confusion.
It poses a major issue for league play and tournaments, something the club discovered when they tried to share courts last year, she said.
“It did not go well,” said Leblic. “With visiting out-of-town teams that participate in the interclub league program, it’s actually not allowed by the association anymore to have pickleball and tennis courts combined because of the conflict of lines.
“So, any sanctioned events are no longer being played on combination courts.”
The tennis club would like to see pickleball courts included in their indoor facility, should they acquire the land to build, she said. It’s intended to be a multi-purpose, multi-sport complex to accommodate all court sports, she said.
In addition to not being able to share courts, the Okotoks Tennis Club has another pressing issue to deal with: growth. The club grew exponentially for a few years but is now on the decline due to a lack of court time.
“We can only occupy the courts 50 per cent in prime time, the rest is for public use,” said Leblic. “So, we’re pretty restricted in what we can do and space fills up pretty fast.”
The club offers programs for youth and adult players and works with schools to offer phys-ed programs in addition to clinics, private, semi-private and group lessons, and a number of leagues including singles, doubles and seniors. Tournaments take up additional time on the courts, she said.
She said the Okotoks annexation brings hope to the tennis club, and members are currently working around the clock to try to secure a piece of land to build a new court facility.
The main focus is making sure the tennis club fits into the matrix outlined in the Town’s newly-approved recreation master plan, which prioritizes facilities and needs based criteria like income brought into the town from events, whether facilities are multi-purpose, and the number of groups or residents that could benefit from the facility, she said.
“We’re working hard on this and it’s a bit of a challenge for us because we all work full-time, and we’re all volunteers,” said Leblic. “We’re doing the best to our abilities.”
