City council is supporting two grant applications to the Northern Development Initiatives Trust from the Prince George Tennis Club and the Prince George Golf and Curling Club, which are each looking for $30,000 from the funding body.
When the tennis club completes its move to the golf and curling club grounds, the new facilities are set to include eight hard courts with stadium lighting, five pickleball courts incorporated into the tennis court design, a coaches house for equipment storage and information and upgrades to the existing PGGCC facility.
"Although we have done our due diligence in planning the construction of this facility, this project will be financially demanding on the club," wrote tennis club president Rob Prideaux in a letter to the city. "For instance, we will have no extra funds from operating revenues to upgrade or renovate the driving range building into a suitable administrative facility."
The non-profit organization is looking for the extra breathing room in the $852,000 project to offer some financial stability during the construction phase "as the demolition of our previous courts has affected revenue from membership, lesson, and tournament fees this season," Prideaux wrote.
In their application to the same NDIT Community Halls and Recreation Facilities fund, the golf and curling club foresees the need to add at least three new full-time equivalent positions to deal with the demand on a facility that will now include a tennis club and indoor climbing operation.
The expansion coupled with the fact the club will also host two nationally televised events in coming years - the B.C. Scotties in 2014 and the Canada Winter Games in 2015 - the number of residents and tourists who "view the PGG&CC as the place for recreation in the North" can only increase, wrote club treasurer Kyle Storey in a letter to the city.
The positions would include a general and food and beverage manager, an office person and a temporary consultant/construction position to manage and design the golf course project.
