MEDSTEAD Lawn Tennis Club is fighting back following the shock last October when its Roedown Road pavilion was gutted by fire.
Following a period during which members would have been homeless save for the loan of a temporary Portacabin, the club has now submitted a planning application for the construction of a new club house.
According to chairman of the building sub-committee Tony Chivers, the proposed new single storey building would be of traditional brick and tile design, utilising the pitched roof space which would have a dormer window overlooking the courts.
Standing on the old base, the building would comprise a club room with WC facilities at ground level, with storage and a committee room in the roof, and room for viewing. The dormer would overhang the existing patio, giving a further protected viewing area.
The plans have been drawn up by Four Marks architects Johnson Design, and the building is expected to cost in the region of £80,000 to construct.
Once planning permission has been obtained, the club will then be able to go out to tender and apply for grant funding which it is hoped will come via the Foundation for Sports and the Arts and Sport England. The project is to benefit also from half the proceeds of the annual village fete, from a £2,000 grant from the Hampshire Playingfields Association, and from promised support from East Hampshire District Council.
The new club house will serve to enhance the existing facilities which comprise three courts, two of which are floodlit, and a practice area. There is existing permission also for the construction of a fourth court and to light both this and court three.
It is a far cry from last autumn when a savage blaze left nothing of the old pavilion and its contents but ashes and rubble. A plea went out for help and a member of the community, who wishes to remain anonymous, came up trumps by providing a temporary building on the site, for which members will be eternally grateful.
According to Mr Chivers, an investigation into the incident has found no proven reason for the fire but has concluded that it could have been caused by an electrical fault.