NICEVILLE — After more than two years of planning and fundraising, officials are ready to break ground on a new tennis complex.
The community-funded Eagle-Ram Tennis Courts are set to open next spring after a group of parents, coaches and administrators came together to make the eight-court dream a reality.
View the plans for the tennis courts »
Learn more about the design of the courts »
“We’re right at the threshold,” said Leslie Parker, the now-retired tennis coach at Ruckel Middle School who proposed the courts in late 2010. “ … I went to my principal and I said, ‘I think we need to build tennis courts and I think they need to be for all the children of Niceville and Valparaiso.’ ”
Ruckel Principal Debra Collins Goolsby was onboard immediately, and in short time three moms stepped forward to really get the ball rolling.
Never counting on funding from the school district, they reached out to the community for support. To date, they have raised enough money to complete four of the eight courts and are waiting to find out about a $50,000 grant, Goolsby said.
It will take about $300,000 in all to finish the courts and the lighting.
“To collect that money, in this economy is nothing short of a miracle,” Goolsby said. “We feel before we finish the four courts we’ll have enough money to finish all eight.”
The courts, which will be a mixture of concrete and asphalt, will be used by students at Ruckel, Niceville High School, Lewis School and the Okaloosa STEMM Academy during the school day. There also will be hours for the public.
The courts will be built on school district property next to Ruckel, Parker said. They settled on eight courts so high school tournaments can be held there.
It wasn’t clear Wednesday exactly when construction will start — the Okaloosa County School Board only approved it Monday night — but Parker said the courts should be ready for the 2013-14 tennis season next spring.
“Students are going to be better because of it,” Goolsby said.
Contact Daily News Staff Writer Katie Tammen at 850-315-4440 or ktammen@nwfdailynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @KatieTnwfdn.