MIDLAND, Texas — At Tuesday's meeting, the Midland City Council approved a funding agreement between Midland Development Corporation and Bush Tennis Center.
With the approval, MDC will now fund and support Bush Tennis Center in bringing in the ACE Athletic Center, a new expansion.
The new athletic center will add more than just tennis courts.
“It’s not only tennis," said City Councilwoman Amy Stretcher-Burkes. "They want to do an indoor basketball facility, a performance facility, they've added pickleball courts and a new thing called padel. They’re doing so much in this community, and that’s exactly what MDC promotional funds should be used for.”
The tennis center has already broken ground, and you can see the construction and steel from the road.
The new facilities will keep families and their kids in Midland, instead of driving out of the city to play some sports.
The athletic center will also have the space to hold kid-friendly summer camps and other activities.
"It's going to give kids and adults a chance to compete in multiple athletic sports, and be able to stay here in Midland, and not have to travel so much to do sports outside of Midland," said Executive Director of the Bush Tennis Center Tim Stallard. "Plus, we're going to be able to host camps of all sorts of things to help kids in the city."
All in all, the athletic center is going to give Midland’s youth more positive and sustaining activities to do, and maybe help keep them out of trouble.
“That’s our main mission," said Stallard. "Keep kids on the courts and out of the courts. We’ve done that through tennis, but now we’re gonna be able to do it through other sports, so I think this will be great for the community.”
Stallard is hopeful that the athletic center will be up and running in about 14 to 16 months.