FACILITIES UPDATE   Dear members, As you may be aware, the state of indoor tennis for the 2010/11 season is currently in question. The Courtyard Tennis and Fitness Club, which has been in operation for over 15 years, have been dedicated to the development and growth of tennis in our region since its inception. Recent circumstances have caused management to decide to put the The Courtyard Club for sale on the open market and therefore its future as a tennis facility is uncertain.  Tennis Nova Scotia (TNS) would like to thank The Courtyard Club and its management and staff for its outstanding years of service to the tennis community and while it is our hope that it will continue to be operated as a tennis facility by future ownership, there is no guarantee of that. In 2009, Tennis Nova Scotia formed a tennis facilities committee comprised of: ·      Jack Graham (Past Chair Tennis Canada & ITF Board Member) ·      Andrew Oxner (President TNS) ·      Craig Bethune (TNS Board Member) ·      Andy Lynch (Principal Lydon Lynch Architects) ·      Christophe Lambert (Senior Director ATA Tennis Canada) ·      Roger Keating (Executive Director TNS)   This committee is currently working with HRM staff to secure land for a TNS operated tennis facility in the coming years. The vision is to create a facility that is able to serve all levels of tennis from grassroots community programming and recreational play to elite level training and tournament play. TNS in conjunction with HRM project planners are currently looking at different options for HRM owned land where a new facility could be situated.  If TNS is able to secure a site with the assistance of the municipality, we would still have a daunting task to lobby the municipal, provincial and federal governments to assist with the financial backing of this facility. Tennis Nova Scotia is pleased to announce that there will be another indoor tennis facility opening in the fall of 2010. The Daniel Nestor Tennis Centre will be starting construction shortly in the Rocky Lake Business Park in Bedford. Additional information on this project can be found by going to www.dntc.ca . We believe that based on current and future demand, that our province can sustain multiple year-round tennis facilities. The Board of TNS would like to emphasize that facility development is a major priority for our association and we are doing everything in our power to increase the number of tennis facilities and programs both seasonal and year round in our province. If you have any questions or are interested in assisting with TNS facilities projects,please do not hesitate to contact any one of our facilities committee members.