Tennis club looks to land reform legislation
11 Oct 05
Members explore buyout option to save club threatened with development
Members of a Stirlingshire tennis club are attempting to use the land reform legislation to stop developers closing the club.
The Killearn Tennis Club had been asked to find £300,000 to buy the land to stop the closure. A valuation commissioned by the club valued the land at between £25,000 and £50,000.
Members are currently looking at ways to force the landowners to sell them the land at a price agreed by an independent land valuer. The club has been used rent-free since 1920s.
This would be the first time that the 2003 Land Reform Act has been used to save a sporting facility. David Fulton, president of the tennis club which was used by rising Scots star Andy Murray as a junior, said the club had received some indications from the Scottish Executive that it would qualify for a buyout.
Stirling Council has said that it would oppose any development on the land which would mean it could no longer be used for recreational purposes.
To qualify under the Land Reform Act, the club would have to prove that a community buyout would be in the public interest and benefit the community. If ministers approve the proposal, the land would be independently valued and the community would get six months to raise the money to buy the club land.