Plans have been approved for the construction of tennis courts, associated floodlighting, parking and huts in Sonning.
The application for land at Berkshire County Sports Club in Sonning Lane was approved by Wokingham borough council officials last week.
The plans will largely adopt the footprint of the existing courts, except for an eight-metre encroachment of court space eastwards.
Six external floodlights for the tennis courts formed part oof the application, with the padel courts lit internally.
The padel courts will be housed within an 8.5-metre tall triple span steel structure canopy, with the elevations lined with wire mesh, all covered by a fabric roof cover.
Two small tennis and padel huts were also approved, both of which were described as being modest in footprint, and single storey in scale. Each hut is located adjacent to the relevant activity area.
The plans were widely supported during the consultation period.
One local resident said: “I think this plan is a great addition to the sports facilities in the area.”
Another said: “I fully support this application as it improves the quality of the tennis facilities at Berkshire County Sports, alongside the addition of a new sport that is growing in popularity very rapidly.”
Another said: “The local area is in desperate need of more sports facilities, and padel is one of the fastest growing sports in the country.
“It doesn’t require huge athleticism, so is genuinely accessible to anyone.
“Good for Wokingham to be ahead of the curve on this one.”
