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Residents offer concerns, ideas for Racquet Center
Numbered stickers went up next to items on the list: better maintenance, a Pro Shop and the need for league play rules.
It was part of a public meeting hosted Thursday night at Mackle Park by the Racquet Center Subcommittee and the Marco Island Parks and Recreation Department.
More than 25 residents voiced their concerns and suggestions about the Marco Island Racquet Center at the meeting, which was aimed at getting comments from users about the current physical conditions and management of the center. It was also set to generate ideas on how to improve the center and its operations in the future.
Parks and Recreation Director Dana Souza said the information will be used to improve services and set goals for the center.
“It’s really a process for developing a long-term plan for the Racquet Center,” he said.
The center, at 1275 San Marco Road, has two hard tennis courts, six clay tennis courts and two indoor racquetball courts.
Residents can buy an annual pass or pay hourly court fees to use it and more than 325 residents have bought passes this year.
During the next five years, $200,000 is slated for improvements. Of that money, $100,000 is being targeted for improvements to clay courts.
To gauge the importance of certain issues, Souza set up an interactive project halfway through the meeting so each resident could go through all the suggestions and decide which were their five top priorities.
Souza said it would help the committee get to the main issues more quickly.
It also forced the residents to make up their minds of what were the most important issues for them.
The meeting broke down the needs into subcategories which included tennis, racquetball, services, clubhouse issues, general outdoor upkeep, league play and social activities.
Requests ranged from getting water coolers on every court to razing the clubhouse to start anew.
Also high on the request list were the need for more tournaments and events at the center.
“What’s happening now is that nobody is doing anything,” said John Moulton, 48. “Somebody needs to be setting these things up.”
Subcommittee member Ken Mitchell agreed and said that most of the residents he had spoken with also wanted more activities — but not at the cost of their sport.
“They want the social events,” Mitchell said. “But they want them around tennis.”
For eight-year resident Constance Gaynor, all the center needs is a little sprucing up.
“I think we have a great facility that can really be improved,” Gaynor said.
But for her it all comes down to tennis.
“I’m just looking for a good game of tennis wherever I can get it,” she said.
For more information, visit www.cityofmarcoisland.com or call Souza at (239) 642-1666.

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