This week’s edition of the TWATL featured an article updating our Club’s pickleball enthusiasts about proposed work at our Franklin Creek Campus. Since the article was penned, additional information has become available, allowing your Club to further inform our members and fill in some of the gaps.
After receiving input from the Capital Project Committee (CPC), member focus groups, the CPC advisory team, area residents, and our Club's professional staff, last week your Board of Governors approved the development of final plans for expansion of the Franklin Creek campus parking area, the addition of eight new pickleball courts, and a pickleball pavilion to provide a more suitable area for socialization before, during, and after pickleball games.
The engineer’s drawings are being prepared so the permitting process can begin. Unfortunately, no construction can begin until this process is complete. We are, however, able to proceed with cost estimation from contractors for the parking portion of the project. We will add 35 car parking spaces, an employee parking area with an additional 34 parking spaces, and 65 additional cart parking spaces around the campus. We are hiring the court construction company previously used, therefore, the bid for eight additional courts is already in hand. Given our understanding of how long all of this can take, we may not break ground until next year, probably immediately following the Savannah Challenger, in April.
To date, we are waiting for the final design from the architect for the pavilion so cost estimates can be obtained. The pavilion will provide many benefits to the pickleball community: new bathrooms, plenty of outdoor shaded areas with seating, a small pickleball accessories shop, beverage and light food offerings, and an attended check-in kiosk.
Our goal is to get cost estimates for all proposed elements of the project. This will allow us to determine whether the plan can be executed all at once or in phases, as financial resources permit. Our desire is to complete all work at once – it is more efficient (time and money) and limits the disruption of the campus and to our members. Your Board, our Capital Project and Finance Committees, and our staff believe it best to develop implementation plans that provide the best outcome for our membership.
Pickleball is the fastest growing sport and recreational pursuit in the world. Your Board of Governors and Club staff listened to members when they expressed interest in adding a few “test courts” to meet the nascent curiosity about the game. Our test courts were quickly overflowing, moving our Club to incrementally add courts to meet the growing demand. We are certain the interest in the game will continue to grow, at our Club and around the world. In addition, an increasing number of prospective members are avid pickleball players and our conviction is that our Club can set the standard for residential clubs as it relates to pickleball and create a competitive advantage for the benefit of all members, even those who have not (yet) stepped on a court!