ERIC
KRAUSE
In
business since 1996
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NEWSPAPERS
BUILDING A FACILITY
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November 23, 2013
(On-Line)
Enthusiasts get ball bouncing at Sydney dome
Published on
November 22, 2013
SYDNEY — Tennis enthusiasts will no
longer have to shovel snow off their
local courts in order to play their
favourite sport.
©
Submitted photo
Justin Pace, left, and William Buckland
are shown
during a game of tennis at the Cape
Breton Health Recreation Complex dome.
On Sunday,
there will be an open house to promote
indoor tennis at the Cape Breton Health
Recreation Complex dome starting at 2:30
p.m. and running until 6 p.m.
Mike Pace,
president of the Cromarty Tennis Club in
Sydney, said moving indoors will
encourage people to keep playing during
the cold winter months.
Pace and
Cromarty club vice-president Bill
Buckland thought up the idea of using
the soccer dome at Cape Breton
University for tennis after hearing the
facility was being underutilized.
"We went
out and the ball bounced perfectly,"
said Pace. "We wanted to play for health
and recreation, for kids, for older
people, for just general health in
sport."
To
transform the dome into temporary tennis
courts, four nets were ordered from the
United States, said Pace.
"It's a way
for tennis players to play year-round
and for the dome to receive more
revenue," he added.
Pace said
the growth of tennis in Nova Scotia is
on the rise and can be attributed to the
success of Canadian tennis players,
Milos Raonic and Vasek Pospisil.
"This past
season Cromarty had one of its biggest
memberships ever and we just wanted to
keep it going," said Pace. "Cape Breton
is the only place across Nova Scotia
without indoor tennis courts and this
would be a first for us."
For tennis
players like Eric Krause, the move to an
indoor court means he won't have to
shovel snow in order to play tennis this
winter.
Krause said
while he's excited to play at the dome,
he's still pushing for an indoor tennis
facility in the Cape Breton Regional
Municipality.
"We've
practiced out (at the dome) a few times
and it's going to be a little bit
challenging for some players, but it's
going to be interesting," said Krause.
"This will
be the first time in about six years
that we won't be playing outdoor tennis
in the snow."
Anyone with
an interest in tennis is encouraged to
attend the open house. In addition to
food and refreshments, there will also
be tennis rackets provided.
Cape
Breton Post, On-Line, November 23, 2013
April
19, 2013
(On-Line)
April
20, 2013 (Newspaper)
Quest for
indoor tennis centre continues
-
CAPE BRETON
POST
-
Published on
April 19, 2013
By Elizabeth Patterson -
Cape Breton Post
SYDNEY — It seems like a
natural, an indoor tennis centre for an area with lots of rain and chilly
weather for about two-thirds of the year.
Yet, those behind the Cromarty Community Indoor Tennis Centre have been
trying since 2006 to get funding support for their dream. And although the
idea is still just that, chair Eric Krause remains determined that some day,
the Cape Breton Regional Municipality will have its own indoor tennis
facility.
“We’ve applied everywhere
for infrastructure,” says Krause. “We’ve done everything we’re suppose to do
and so far, we didn’t get anything.”
Despite numerous attempts to
apply for funding, Krause says his group will simply keep trying.
“The closest we came was two
or three years ago when the Harper government had the infrastructure program
and we were eligible but then they changed the eligibility rules to only
existing clubs and we don’t yet have a facility,” says Krause. “So we were
put on Plan B and Plan B has never happened yet.”
The group wants to construct
and operate the island’s first indoor facility which would consist of one
doubles court for tennis. The cushioned court would be run by the centre and
would be open year-round with a focus towards young, old and those with
physical challenges.
For now, they are a
non-profit federal charity, which means they can issue tax receipts for
donations but it also means that they can’t make money by charging for
memberships, although they can hold projects to make money. Any facility
they build will be for public use.
While the building may not
be happening yet, the group is behind a major tennis tournament and
children’s clinics that will be held during the Labour Day weekend. The 2013 CCITC National Living Healthy 55+ Team Tennis Doubles Tournament is a
round-robin event that will be aimed at players 55 and older who will be
guaranteed six games each. The clinics will be for children between the ages
of six and 16. The events will be held at Cromarty Tennis Club, Sydney River
Tennis Club and New Waterford Tennis Club.
“We want to do it every
year,” says Krause. “We’ll be basing it on the 55 plus tournament that was
held here last year. We’re hoping to get some of those people to come back
and play.”
The event will be open to
about 56 teams and more information is available on the website,
www.cromartytennis.ca/ccitc
. [Now Defunct]
epatterson@cbpost.com
February 14, 2012
-
SYDNEY — Local tennis
enthusiasts are rallying together to call for a year-round indoor tennis
facility at the remediated steel and coke ovens site.
Topics : Stantec , Cromarty Tennis Club , Royal Canadian Legion , Sydney
, Nova Scotia , Canada There will be two open house meetings this week
to discuss a draft plan on the future uses of the Sydney tar ponds and
coke ovens remediation project that has been created by the consulting
firm, Stantec.
“For the last seven or 10
years we’ve been looking, at some point or another, to put in some sort
of facility,” said Liam MacDonald, head pro and tennis director at
Cromarty Tennis Club in Sydney. “It’s obviously a huge undertaking to do
so, just in terms of not only the initial cost but being able to
maintain it and support it.”
MacDonald said there have
been two groups in the Sydney area who have been working steadily to
create an indoor court for all tennis players, not just members of
Cromarty.
“We kinda got together
recently and just decided to, I guess, put both our power together
because it is very competitive,” said MacDonald. “I expect this meeting
of general interest is going to be well received by the community.”
MacDonald said the group is
interested in establishing an indoor tennis court at one of the
pre-existing structures, or through the construction of a new facility.
The Cromarty club isn’t
proposing any financial commitment to the project, but says there are
several proponents who are interested in development.
“Team sports aren’t for
everyone,” said MacDonald. “And I found that individual sport was
certainly for me and it paid for my education and I’ve seen the world
because of it. It’s a great opportunity and something I hope a lot more
people will look into and an indoor facility is how we get to that
stage. So the more support the better.”
MacDonald said tennis is a
growing sport, not only in Nova Scotia but across Canada. He is
encouraging anyone who wishes to see an indoor tennis facility developed
at the remediation site to show support at this week’s meetings.
The meetings will be held
Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Etoile de l’Acadie, 15 Inglis St., Sydney, and
Thursday, 1 p.m. at the Royal Canadian Legion branch 128, Whitney Pier,
10 Wesley St., Sydney.
epottie@cbpost.com
-------------------------------
Good Morning,
The Executive of Cromarty Tennis Club would like to have input in the Draft
Interpretive Master Plan prepared by Stantec for the Sydney Tar Ponds and
Coke Ovens Remediation Project. Our interest is the use of one of the
pre-existing structures, or the construction of a new facility as a
year-round indoor tennis facility. We are not proposing any financial
commitment by our club, but rather our support to several proponents who
have indicated an interest in providing this service. Public hearings
regarding the future use of this property are now drawing near.
The meeting dates are as follows:
(1) Wednesday, February 15 (3 PM - 5 PM, Cape Breton Centre for Craft and
Design, 322 Charlotte Street, Sydney). Stantec will be making presentations
just after 3 PM and 4 PM, of 15 minutes each
(2) Wednesday, February 15 (6 PM - 9 PM, Etoile de l'Acadie, 15 Inglis
Street, Sydney)
(3) Thursday, February 16 (1 PM - 5 PM, Royal Canadian Legion, Whitney Pier
Branch 128, 10 Wesley Street, Sydney)
I would like to encourage all members to please, if at all possible, come
out and show your support for this project. This is certainly the next (and
necessary) step for us as a growing tennis community, and something numerous
people have worked at tirelessly to prepare. Both myself and Coach Kevin
will be present, as well as many of the board who can shed more light on the
project. I look forward to seeing you there!
Best,
Liam MacDonald
Certified Tennis Professional
Head Pro and Tennis Director
Cromarty Tennis Club
March 11, 2009
Letter to the Editor - Eric
Krause
"Indoor Tennis Project Has A
Foot In Both Camps"
Indoor tennis project has a
foot in both camps
The Cape Breton Post
The recent
opinion articles by Dr. Chris Milburn (Weekend Feedback: Palatial Fitness
Centre an Extravagance Region Doesn’t Need, Feb. 28) and Dr. Andrew Lynk
(Weekend Feedback: ‘Big Box’ Fitness Facilities Can Co-Exist with Community
Assets, March 7) and others have been of great interest to the Cromarty
Community Indoor Tennis Centre, which is fundraising to construct its
“small-box,” all-season public facility on property at the Cape Breton
Airport Authority.
In a way, our
charity plans fall into both schools of thought.
As Dr. Lynk
sees the fitness complex, we see our facility (obviously most valuable
during inclement days of summer and winter) serving the entire Cape Breton
Regional Municipality in a hub capacity.
However, more
in line with Dr. Milburn’s view, we see the benefit of a satellite facility
one day built on the Northside, with our proposed structure serving as a
model.
Given the present circumstances (existing land, secured government and local
funding, and a dedicated society), in this instance Dr. Lynk clearly wins.
As for the
claim that he is part of an elite group, no, he is not, as I observed during
several early meetings to which I was graciously invited for my input on
indoor racquet sports when they were originally being considered for this
location.
Really, what we
have here is a familiar refrain, the one centred upon the belief that
“big-box,” expensive hubs or central facilities are best, versus the view
that numerous less expensive (in individual units but not in total dollars)
community facilities, built as close to their centres as possible, serve the
public interest best.
In most
instances, the side that gets the funds first wins the foot race, with the
unfortunate result that the losing side would rather cut off its nose
despite its face.
Eric Krause
chair, Cromarty Community Indoor Tennis Centre
January 20, 2009
"Indoor Tennis Group 'Shovel
Ready'"
By Greg MacVicar
Indoor tennis group 'shovel ready'
Finding the money the next big hurdle
BY GREG MACVICAR
CAPE BRETON POST
SYDNEY - Playing on a cushioned court in a bright, spacious and warm building is
the dream of local tennis enthusiasts who previously got their winter tennis fix
by clearing snow from an outdoor court and playing in temperatures that dipped
below 10 degrees Celsius.
"We played
January, February, March," said Eric Krause, chairman of the Cromarty Community
Indoor Tennis Centre, a Sydney-based charitable organization formed in 2006 with
the ultimate goal of erecting a building devoted to year-round indoor tennis.
"We played every day outdoors. But I decided it was too much work for all of
us."
The CCITC got a
big boost in December when the Sydney Airport Authority offered the group a
25-year lease on a plot of land near the airport for the centre, with access to
sewer and water.
"We're 'shovel
ready' like everybody says you have to be," said Krause. "We just don't have the
money yet."
The building the
group has in mind is a pre-engineered steel structure, 140 feet long, 80 feet
wide, with walls 26 feet high and a maximum height of 39 feet at the central
ridge, featuring one cushioned doubles court, 60 feet wide and 120 feet long, a
number of children's courts and washrooms.
Krause estimates
the minimum cost of the building at $400,000, with an engineered slab,
insulation and cushioned court expected to be the priciest items on the centre's
materials list.
The proposed
cushioned floor will consist of several layers of rubber topped by an acrylic
playing surface.
"That means it's
good for young legs and old legs;' said Krause, a 66-year-old retired Fortress
of Louisbourg historian and archivist, who's been playing tennis since he was 10
years old. "You don't get these knee injuries. It's a completely different
game."
The CCITC, which
is a tax-exempt Sydney-based charitable organization and registered with the
Canada Revenue Agency, recently kicked off a charity donation drive.
"When it comes
to the naming the facility itself, we're looking for a donor," said Krause. "If
we get a major donor, we're more than happy to put their name on it."
He said a
realistic scenario would see one third of the centre's cost being covered by
donations, one third from the Nova Scotia Department of Health Promotion and
Protection, and one third in government infrastructure grants.
The health
promotion department requires a group to have two-thirds of its funding in place
by February of any given year before the department turns over its one-third and
that money has to be spent within one year, so unless the CCITC gets a big
infusion of cash in the next couple of weeks, the earliest they'll have 'shovels
in the ground' is late-winter or early-spring 2010.
The group
envisions a public facility available on a first-come, first-served basis,
providing tennis lessons to students as a part of their school curriculum and
offering training courses for tennis coaches, officials and instructors. The
organization also plans to provide tennis programs for elderly players and
disabled players.
To make a
donation to the CCITC, visit
www.cromartytennis.ca/ccitc
[Now Defunct] and click on the link to CanadaHelps.org.
[Now Cancelled]Income tax receipts will be issued immediately.
__________________
gmacvicar@cbpost.com