Tennis Canada and private investors are hoping to serve up aces for people living in the western part of Montreal.
Construction to build six indoor tennis courts under a permanent dome in Île-Bizard is scheduled to begin this fall with an opening day set for the fall of 2025.
Tennis Canada and Rogers Communications are teaming up on the project with seed money to help pay for the $4.5-million facility.
The goal is to make the sport more accessible and affordable year-round.
“Ultimately what we want more people playing the game at a cheaper price,” Eugène Lapierre, a consultant to Tennis Canada, told Global News.
Tennis Canada’s goal is to help finance removable or permanent domes to cover 160 tennis courts across the country by the end of the decade. The sport association says it’s on track to reach 35 per cent of that goal by the end of this year.
“There is such a shortage of indoor tennis courts in Quebec all around, in Montreal, it’s unbelievable,” Lapierre said.
The promoter sold Tennis Canada on the idea to build a permanent dome in Île-Bizard to serve a community that doesn’t have any indoor tennis clubs in the area.
“I ended up seeing there was a nice opportunity to help, both financially from a business plan but also help the community and give back,” Robert Soussa, the promoter of the project, told Global News.
Tennis Canada helped fund a retractable dome covering outdoor tennis courts in Waterloo, Que., but Soussa says a removable dome wasn’t financially feasible in this case.
“It’s a challenge to have a dome that is removed and added every year,” Soussa said.
There is an outdoor tennis club in Île-Bizard with eight well-maintained hard courts that has 700 members.
The director of the junior program at the Île-Bizard Tennis Club is thrilled that an indoor facility will be built less than two kilometres away.
“I think it’s a great idea. Honestly, we’ve been waiting for a West Island Club. Île-Bizard is so close for everyone, for the kids, so I think it’s going to be a great project,” Sofia Dankov told Global News.
Players in the area have to join indoor clubs several kilometres away to play tennis in the winter. The president of the Île-Bizard Tennis Club is convinced a local indoor club that is affordable will be a big hit.
“We always looking for a place to get inside during the winter season,” Richard Sabourin told Global News.
Reaching that goal to serve up the sport by the end of 2025 is now within reach, provided there are no faults along the way.