Giant step forward for tennis club’s ambition
£70,000 cash boost
Rutherglen Lawn Tennis Club ( RLTC) have taken a massive step towards returning the courts at Burnside to their former glory.
As previously reported in the Reformer, the club are keen to take over the courts which have lain vacant since Burnside Tennis Club shut down last year.
And members have now been informed the club have been awarded £70,000 from the Lawn Tennis Association and Tennis Scotland for the project.
RLTC will need £230,000 to bring the courts back into play, with this cash tipping them over the halfway mark.
They have already received £8000 through a Tesco Bags for Help award and have raised £10,100 of their own £20,000 target.
A further £32,000 will come from the club itself.
In a newsletter to members, the club committee said they were confident the courts would be back in operation by next summer.
They added: “This is a huge milestone and a massive step towards making this dream come true.”
The club have also applied for £50,000 from the Sportscotland ‘ facilities fund’ with the application now at the final stage.
This will be determined by a panel arranged for next month.
The committee say they are “very optimistic” this will be successful.
Progress is continuing on an application through the Landfill Communities Fund but work is also ongoing to explore other funding options.
Once the funding is in place the decision on whether to proceed will go to an EGM.
The club launched a social media campaign # returntosplendour to support the project. You can find out more or make a donation at www. returntosplendour.net.