Cayce tennis complex in the works

Complex could help lure even bigger events to county

By JOEY HOLLEMAN - jholleman@thestate.com

The Lexington County Tennis Complex on Oak Drive has been so successful, a second, similar complex now is in the works in Cayce.

Cayce officials announced plans for the 24-court center off 12th Street Extension near I-77 last week. It would be slightly larger than the 21-court complex on Oak Drive, and the two would have the combined capacity to host major national tournaments, said Jay Criscione, executive director of the Lexington County Recreation and Aging Commission.

“There’s a lot of national tournaments that have minimum requirements for X number of courts, and we just didn’t have that number of courts,” Criscione said. With the addition of the Cayce complex, “we’ll qualify for all kinds of tournaments.”

The recreation agency built the Oak Drive complex in 2002, with the dual purpose of giving local tennis leagues a central place to play and bringing in state and regional tournaments to boost the local economy.

It’s been a huge success, hosting national and even international tournaments.

The USTA Southern Sectionals drew more than 2,000 players from around the Southeast in 2003 and 2004. The complex has been home to an International Tennis Federation juniors event the past four years, with last year’s field coming from 33 countries and 23 states.

Twenty-one events are scheduled at the complex this year, said center director Jorge Andrew.

But the largest events, like the Southern Sectionals, need more than 21 courts. When the complex hosted the sectionals, some matches were played at Richland County and Columbia courts.

When nearly 1,000 players come to Lexington next summer for the National Public Parks Tennis Championships, they will play all matches in Lexington County if the Cayce complex construction goes smoothly.

The Cayce courts will be built on a 13-acre site leased by SCANA to the recreation commission. It’s near SCANA’s planned new corporate headquarters.

An agreement approved by Cayce City Council puts a $4.6 million price tag on the complex. The city and the recreation commission each will pay half the cost.

Criscione said the recreation agency wanted to expand its tennis capabilities, but it couldn’t afford to pay all the costs for a new complex in Cayce. The city wanted the project enough to pitch in half the cost.

The recreation agency’s portion will be paid out of the $4 million allotted to the Cayce area from a $17 million tax-supported bond approved by the county in 2006. That leaves about $1.7 million for a baseball/softball complex to replace the aging Bray Park.

Reach Holleman at (803) 771-8366.