Refurbishment of Carlow Lawn Tennis Club

A much more impressive building with viewing balconies overlooking ten instead of eight courts. An improved access with new car-parks.

This is the vision President, Colm Kelly, has for Carlow Lawn Tennis Club as work came to a successful climax on their most recent project. He was speaking at a gathering in the club at their Oak Park premises on Friday to mark a project which will make the club a more comfortable and place people will want to come to.

With the installation of roof and wall insulation and new doors and windows which will aid the retention of heat in the clubhouse, the whole face of the inside of the club has changed.

For many years, the Carlow Tennis Club, which caters for tennis, squash and badminton, were paying up to €15,000 in heat and electricity bills. While it is too early to say, Kelly feels that with the aid of the solar panels installed some years ago coupled with the new insulation, electricity bills will be all but erased.

“Ok. We will have to pay for lights but whatever heat is generated will be retained,” added the club officer.

The cost of the project came to just €280,000. Nearly a €100,000 through the clubs own funding, €177,000 through Sports Capital grants while the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) grant amounted to €18,000.

The club has 1014 active members, 27 different nationalities with an age profile from 4 to 84.

The club also reaches out to the wider community where it offers its facilities to St Lazerians Special School, the Delta Day Services Centre, schools and businesses. Members of Carlow Bowling Club also use the facility.

“It is an ethos in the club that we share our facilities,” says Colm.

Marina DeCosta of Carlow County Development Partnership acted as a mentor for the project As a member of the Sustainable Energy Community the organisation have expertise which the club was able to draw on.

“We go to organisations such as Carlow Tennis Club where we inform the club what can be done to improve their facilities through renewable energy, reducing carbon emissions, making it user friendly and environmentally strong,” DeCosta explained.

The club was also advised on how to fill in the forms when they applied for funding. She paid tribute to the diligence of the Carlow club.

“If it wasn’t for Colm’s dedication to the club it would never have happened. It takes a trojan effort. This is now a fantastic facility available to the community of Carlow,” she said.

From the time the renovations were muted it took over four years to bring it to fruition. Kelly recalled what had to be done.

“It was apparent there were major problems for heating and lighting. Apart from the discomfort the building was little more than a glorified cattle-shed. Heat just escaped through every possible hole in the building. It was obvious we had to do something about it,” he recalled.

John Taylor of Taylor Construction was also present to see the unveiling of the work.

“A great choice of contractor,” said Kelly who went on to highlight the expertise of the builder.

“Everything that has been done is top class. He was always ahead of the game and was a great choice of contractor.” When it was initially decided what was needed, it only took four weeks to complete the project. Taylor Construction is based in Kilkenny. The club and builder got on well together.

“The lads had a great he commitment for the job. Their instructions were very straight forward and they just let me on with it. Once I was able to get in and had their direction and vision, I was able to take it from there,” said John Taylor.