Only two of the 14 courts at Hawkesbury District Tennis Centre are considered safe and suitable for play, according to a Council report, as councillors back an operator search to help secure the Richmond facility's future.
All 12 councillors supported the new management approach at the October 13 meeting. Council's preliminary assessment puts comprehensive renewal of the courts, lighting, fencing and buildings at potentially more than $2 million.
The decision, recorded as resolution 218, endorses an expressions-of-interest process to identify a suitably qualified private or social enterprise operator, while retaining tennis as the centre's primary use.
The facility, also known as Richmond Tennis Centre, sits on Council-owned community land at Ham Common. Council would retain ownership and oversight of community outcomes under the preferred model.
Councillors also backed a one-year interim arrangement with existing day-to-day operator Inside the Lines Pty Ltd to maintain operations while longer-term arrangements are investigated.
The staff report describes extensive deterioration in court surfaces, fencing, lighting and other infrastructure. Its overall finding that only two courts are safe and suitable is accompanied by a more detailed assessment rating two courts good, four fair, four poor and four unserviceable.
The report says Council instructed the operator to close courts 4, 5 and 6 until they could be made safe. It also records the removal of deteriorated internal fencing and the marking of trip hazards.
Council has already allocated $200,000 in its 2026–27 capital works program for priority renewal. Planned work focuses on replacing synthetic turf on courts 6 and 7, addressing drainage and trip hazards, strengthening net-post foundations and replacing internal fencing between courts 1 and 8.
The report's timetable targets delivery of that program by June 2027. Two additional courts could be considered if procurement prices or grant results are favourable.
A $130,000 Clubsgrants Category 3 infrastructure application is awaiting a November result. Two earlier funding applications totalling $450,000 were unsuccessful, according to the report.
A consultant estimated renewal and upgrades at $550,000 to $1 million, depending on scope. Council's separate preliminary estimate for comprehensive renewal could exceed $2 million. No further renewal funding has been identified in the current long-term financial plan.
Discussing the decision in the first episode of Council's Chambers and Beyond podcast, from 19:19, General Manager Will Barton said the $200,000 allocation would renew two courts, with grants being pursued to extend the work. He said Council was looking for an operator with whom it could develop a long-term renewal plan.
Mayor Mary Lyons-Buckett welcomed the decision from 21:01, saying: “I think that was a great outcome”. The item was adopted with other reports as a block, rather than debated separately.
The new model also supports compatible uses such as pickleball, volleyball, fitness, futsal, three-a-side basketball and wheelchair sports. Pickleball already takes place at the centre, and the Gazette reported on its growing local following in May.
Inside the Lines had publicly called for urgent court maintenance in December 2025. Council's report says the Tennis Association's lease expired on May 31, 2017 and continued on a month-to-month basis. Council retains responsibility for major asset maintenance and renewal.
If the expressions-of-interest process and any subsequent tender do not produce a suitable operator, direct Council management remains a contingency, subject to staffing, operating and budget considerations.
