Round Lake To Get Development

ROUND LAKE PARK LIKES TENNIS COURT PLAN
By Jason King
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Posted Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Round Lake Park officials said they hope an indoor tennis facility comes up aces
for the village.

Developer Randy Malone plans to bring The Players Club, an eight-court indoor
tennis facility, to land near Porter Drive and Route 120.

Malone said plans for the 57,000-square-foot facility include a lounge area and
a game room in addition to the tennis courts and clubhouse, which will be
situated between two sets of four courts.

"It will be an indoor tennis facility with some variety," Malone said. "It
will be a lot more than just tennis."

The business would be a coup of sorts for Round Lake Park.

Over the last few years the village has struggled to sustain economic
development. Stock Lumber relocated to the village from Grayslake and a new
strip mall opened downtown, but other promising projects have either stalled or
fizzled.

Mayor Jean McCue said this project is exciting for the village.

"I want this big time," she said. "Finally something will be breaking
ground for us."

Malone said the club would operate much like a country club. It will be for
members only. He declined to say how much membership would cost.

He said the club likely will host wedding receptions, graduation parties and
other gatherings, for members and nonmembers alike.

The developers behind The Players Club aren't the only ones with the idea.

Last month, an indoor tennis facility proposed near the College of Lake County
in Grayslake was denied when the developers, owners of a similar facility in
Bannockburn, pulled the plans off the table.

Residents who lived near the proposed site said it would be out of character
with the neighborhood nearby.

Malone's site in Round Lake Park is in an industrial type complex.

Malone said he hopes to break ground soon and be open for the start of the
indoor tennis season next fall, sometime around September.