Killaloe Ballina Tennis Club has served up a major volley after completing a state-of-the-art €1 million development with two permanently covered tennis courts, which are the first of its kind outside Dublin.
More than a decade of countless hours planning and sourcing the best materials and facilities for a huge steel frame dome means that 700 members can book a slot to play tennis all year round regardless of weather conditions.
Club chairman, Patrick Seymour pointed out the committee didn’t employ any overall contractor or site manager as various elements were broken down and managed using the expertise of committee and club members, which saved a lot of money.
“Building on the project started in August 2021. It was a long construction project. During the project work had to be parked to allow us to plan for the next phase.
“Construction of the dome started last October, which has just been completed. There were times during the project when we were scratching our heads to find €30,000 in a hurry, but we managed to get it.
“It is the first indoor court development of its type outside Dublin. It is the first indoor court of any kind in Munster. There are only two tennis clubs in Clare – Ennis and Killaloe.
“This development gives us a great advantage for coaching and will allow us to run indoor competitions. The club runs an annual tennis club where players from around Ireland can come and play here. We have been caught with wind and rain previously.
“This facility will allow us to run finals as it is not weather dependent. Junior members are very excited and keen to use it.
Club development chairman, John O’Brien said playing tennis indoors without any impact from wind or rain will be a great addition for members.
“It will be great for children who are taking up tennis. They will be able to play in perfectly controlled conditions. They will not have to worry about wind, rain or other factors,” he said.
“The acrylic surface is very smooth, providing a repeatable bounce in all parts of the courts.”
Mr O’Brien paid tribute to the huge voluntary contribution of members like Patrick Grace to the success of the club.
It is estimated the new facility will cost more than €1 million, which includes a new €475,000 dome. Extensive groundworks and large retaining walls were necessary on a sloping site towards the Scariff Road.
Treasurer David Ryan, said the acrylic surface is the same as the Austrialian Open, which is very conducieve for elite tennis players.
“The indoor courts are very good as you get older because you will not have to battle the elements during the winter. You will not have the hit the ball as hard,” he said.
“Two years ago, the club spent about €100,000 resurfacing their four outdoor courts. It is essentially like a brand new club in terms of playing facilities.
“There has been an increase in the number of people playing tennis since the Covid-19 pandemic.
Tennis clubs in Galway and Castlebar have put up inflatable covers for their tennis courts, which didn’t remain static during periods of high winds and adverse weather conditions.
Some tennis clubs have temporary inflatable structures covering their courts which have to be taken down during storms.
The impressive Killaloe dome can be ventilated by taking off the sides that open like a curtain.
When the Killaloe playground was constructed in 2011, club development chairman, John O’Brien recalled this sparked a plan from a group of members about the club’s future expansion including indoor courts.
There was no progress concerning these plans because the club didn’t own the necessary land. In 2013, Mr O’Brien became club chairman and discussed development plans with Clare County Council.
A year later, the council took control of Bane’s Field back from the Killaloe Ballina Family Resource Centre. In 2016, the council sought public submissions as part of a new Masterplan for the Bane Field and Tobermurragh.
The club had drawn up plans for indoor courts at the end of 2015, which were incorporated into the Masterplan that was adopted following some revisions.
This prompted the start of the planning process, fundraising and the extension of a lease to incorporate land for the new courts.
Groundworks started in 2021.The Covid-19 pandemic resulted in delays and the club had to seek another tender and re-apply for some grants again because the tender went out of date.
In the region of €700,000 was provided through grants and donations.
Funding was by the National Sports Capital Grant programme, W2 Foundation, the JP McManus Benevolent Fund, Tomar Trust, Clare Local Development Company, North Tipperary Development Company, the Ireland Fund and Controllo Ltd.
In total, Clare and North Tipperary LEADER provided €350,000, the Sports Capital Grant allocated €180,000, Tomar Trust €100,000, and €50,000 between W2 Foundation, the J P McManus Benevolent Fund, Controllo Limited and Ireland Fund.
Clann Credo Community Loan Finance provided loans to the club, which could have found it difficult to secure funding from mainstream banks as it doesn’t own land that is on a long-term lease from the council.
The club raised €58,000 from its Halloween fundraising draw as part of its contribution of €300,000, which doesn’t include countless voluntary hours from the committee and other members. A club member also won the €10,000 first prize in the draw.
Killaloe-Ballina Tennis Club was established at a public meeting held on June 22, 1984 and initially comprised twenty-four members.
Following a few moves the club finally found its home with the cooperation of Clare County Council. Two tennis courts were constructed in Bane Field, New Street, Killaloe and these opened in 1988.
With growing membership, a third court was added in 2001 to cater for continuously increasing demand. This in turn generated the need for other kinds of facilities, and so the existing clubhouse was completed in 2003.
An all-weather sand-filled artificial surface was provided for all three courts in 2004. The latest piece in the development project was the construction of a fourth court which was completed by Christmas 2007.
When club officials initially approached Clare County Council with a proposal to build indoor tennis courts, the local authority wanted the club to cover its existing courts.
East Clare correspondent, Dan Danaher is a journalism graduate of Rathmines and UL. He has won numerous awards for special investigations on health, justice, environment, and reports on news, agriculture, disability, mental health and community.