Talks were held today over the planned handover of Nottingham Tennis Centre to the sport’s governing body.
There are plans for the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) to take over the lease and running of the famous centre following talks with Nottingham City Council.
It comes after the council announced in 2019 that it needed to find savings of £15.8 million in its 2020 budget.
The plans were discussed by councillors during the Trusts and Charities Committee meeting on September 27 – but the discussion was closed to the public due to “information relating to financial or business affairs”.
The plans, which would see the City Council retain ownership of the site and the LTA would take a long-term lease and operate the centre – were put out for public consultation last month.
It is hoped that the handover will take place in late autumn 2021.
The LTA said the transfer includes developing the centre into a “world-class tennis training base while retaining community and public tennis facilities”.
The public will still be able to access the centre for pre-booked tennis coaching, as a paying spectator at tournaments such as the Nottingham Viking Open, and for public hire of indoor and outdoor tennis courts.
Cllr Eunice Campbell-Clark – Portfolio Holder for Leisure, Culture, and Schools said: “This is an exciting time for us and for the LTA as we start to explore what could be a fantastic project for the city and for the development of tennis.
“A great deal of valuable work has taken place at the centre already and we are now ready to start looking at how we can build on this and progress to ever higher levels and standards. We look forward to working closely with the LTA over the next few months in the hope we can set up a great future for Nottingham Tennis Centre.
“While there is some work to do and some consultation to take place before we can explain any plans in more detail, I would urge people to keep an eye on the project website for the latest updates, and to use the feedback form to ask any questions we have not covered or to make any comments about the plans.”
Gary Stewart, LTA Head of Operations, said: “Nottingham is one of the leading grass court venues in this country, and a premier venue that provides excellent training facilities, an international tournament venue and a hub for domestic competitions.
“We want to protect and enhance the site and importantly continue its work as one of the largest providers of community tennis in the country.”
