Dear Mayor, Council, Ken Kuntz, Parks, Recreation and Cultural Commission and MLA's:

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1 Cc: Sandi Piggot <sandipiggot~ Wednesday, January 03, 208 2:48 PM Mayor & Council; Cheryl Desaulniers; Mayor Lois Jackson; Future of Tennis in Delta Dear Mayor, Council, Ken Kuntz, Parks, Recreation and Cultural Commission and MLA's: I am a Member of Delta Town & Country Tennis Club and play Tennis there 3 or 4 times a week. I am saddened to see we are going to lose our indoor Tennis & Exercise Facility to a Casino. We have approximately 300 members ranging from Children 5 years of age to Adults and many Seniors into their 70's. The Courts are usually booked from 9am-9pm on a daily basis. On Monday's almost 70 people will play weekly, by way of Block Bookings where you sign up to play on a 3 month schedule. Tennis is one of the few growing sports in BC and with most private indoor Clubs in the Vancouver and the North Shore. With the Casino being built and the Tennis Facility coming down, I think the demand for public indoor courts are currently under served in Delta and will only get worse. Any new Facility should also include Pickle Ball and Squash. Tennis has become a year round sport and with the wet and cold weather, which we have for a large portion of the year, there definitely is a demand for an Indoor Facility to use from Sept. to May. Do you want add more people driving through the Tunnel to increase traffic to get to the Richmond Facilities??? I believe this is a valuable opportunity for the City of Delta to provide additional recreational space and programming for the Community of Delta. Delta is interested in promoting well being, health and fitness for all ages. With Mayor and some of the Council approving Hampton Cove and the Southlands Development, its time to provide much needed facilities for the quickly increasing number of Residents looking to make Delta home. Regards: Sandra Piggot Admiral Way, Delta

2 Susan Robinson <: > Thursday, January 04, 208 9:37 PM Cheryl Desaulniers Gateway Casino Proj~ct - MAINTAIN INDOOR RACQUET FACILITY I am writing to you to ask for your support to maintain an indoor racquet facility in South Delta. The Gateway Casino Application calls for the demolition of the Town & Country Tennis facility of which there is an active membership. These members, ages 4 -sq, and countless other individuals use this facility for league play, provincial tournaments, lessons, social play and building the future of tennis with a Junior Academy. Seeing as the Corporation of Delta will benefit financially from the casino, I implore you to build an indoor racquet facility that will support health and fitness for young and old alike. Sincerely, Susan Robinson V4M 3Y2

3 Jennifer Thursday, January 04, 208 0:36 AM Mayor & Council; Cheryl Desaulniers; Mayor Lois Jackson; Indoor Tennis Facility in Delta I am writing in regards to the fact that the Town and Country tennis facility is to be demolished with no plans at present to replace it. I have been a resident of Tsawwassen for 45 years, a member of the Tsawwassen Tennis Club for 40 years and the Town and Country since it was erected. I was also a member of the Bayside Squash Club which is no more due to development. Delta was approached re replacing that but to no avail. It seems to me that a racquets sports facility would be far more beneficial to the general public in health and wellness than a casino. But, we could have both! The Town and Country has players who use the facility daily with ages ranging from 5-80 years. Approximately 50 of those are in the junior academy with many excellent young players working their way up - what a wonderful way to keep our young and old active. We have pools, gyms, ice rinks etc in Delta but no racquet facilities and do believe we are the only city around with no such services. There is plenty of land available to construct a facility in our area and feel it is a necessity and need for the people of Delta. I strongly hope that you will consider replacing the Town and Country courts in the very near future as there will be hundreds of players with nowhere to play indoors come June 208. Thank you for your consideration in this matter. Sincerely, Jennifer Brennan 546 Beach Grove Road Delta

4 Jane Hindmarch <, Thursday, January 04, 208 2:03 PM Mayor Lois Jackson; Mayor & Council; Cheryl Desaulniers; Gateway Casino Application & Demolition of Town & Country Tennis Club Dear Sirs: I have been a member of the Delta Town & Country Tennis Club for over 0 years. I, along with many other active seniors and players in our community play tennis at the Town & Country Bubble 3 to 4X per week from August to June each year. As a recreational tennis enthusiast I highly value the indoor tennis facilities currently provided at the Town & Country. In reviewing the plans provided by Gateway which outline the proposed Casino on the Town & Country property, it is evident that the current tennis facility is to be demolished without being replaced. Needless to say I find this situation disconcerting. For over SO years the Town & Country Tennis facility has served tennis players from all over the Lower Mainland. There are currently approximately 330 active members, along with a Junior Academy for youth with roughly SO players, some of whom who are at an elite level. The facility hosts league and tournament play throughout the year. Currently the City of Delta is severely lacking in racquet sport facilities of any kind. In the Lower Mainland alone, Vancouver, Richmond, West Vancouver, North Vancouver, Surrey, Burnaby, Abbotsford, Coquitlam and even Chilliwack have indoor tennis facilities for their citizens. A 206 report from the Delta Racquets Society estimates replacement costs of 4 indoor tennis courts (the current number of courts at the Town & Country) to be $.6 million. According to recent reports in The Optimist, the City of Delta is to receive annual revenues of approximately $S million from the BC Lottery Corporation once the $70 million Gateway Casino Resort is built and operating. While I will not argue the merits or morals of constructing a Casino in Delta, I do wish to point out a few salient facts from a 203 study produced by the Wellesley Institute entitled "The Real Cost of Casinos: A Health Equity Impact Assessment" wherein the social and economic impacts of gambling are discussed. In Ontario two percent of gross gaming revenues are set aside for problem gambling prevention, research and treatment. The research indicates that the ANNUAL cost associated with a single problem gambler ranges from $20,000 to $S6,000 with a HIGH proportion of such costs being public expenditures. In view of this information, I must ask the question: If a $70 million Casino Resort can be built in Delta with annual societal costs of between $20,000 and $S6,000 per problem gambler AND if Delta is to be receiving $S million in Casino revenues, should there not be money expended on a tennis/racquet facility which promotes the health and wellness of our citizens? Surely it is only common sense to place a value on sport and healthy living as our taxpayer funded Participaction Canada advertisements tell us to, when the annual costs of gambling are clearly in excess of one time capital costs to build a venue that will provide and promote healthy living for years to come. In conclusion, I wish to express my heartfelt hope that you will consider balancing the Casino equation with something healthy and positive which will provide Delta with a tennis/racquet sports facility to keep out taxpaying citizens enjoying the benefits of active living in our community. Regards, Jane Hindmarch 0 Kuma Crescent Delta BC V4M 2K8

5 ----,, Aileen Stone... Tuesday, January 09, 208 0:3 PM Cheryl Desaulniers; Kuntz@delta.ca Fwd: Save our winter tennis facilities in Delta Save our winter tennis facilities in Delta The Importance of Racquet Facilities in the City of Delta Our new city of Delta should be a place where we can enjoy the facilities expected from a city. Tennis should be one of those facilities. It is a great family recreational sport, provides us with health benefits and is enjoyed by many people in our city. Once our only winter tennis facility in the City of Delta disappears this summer for the proposed casino at the Town and Country Inn, which city would you suggest we go to for recreational racquet sports? Aileen Stone

6 January 0, 208 To Whom It May Concern: I am writing to express my concern about the closure of the Delta Town & Country indoor tennis facility. Once closed, due to the Casino development planned for that site, there will be no indoor tennis facility in Delta. I would like the City of Delta to consider replacing the Town & Country courts with a valuable new indoor court facility - one that has 4 to 6 courts which would attract Tennis BC sanctioned tournaments, National tournaments, junior development squads and much more. As well, several existing outdoor tennis clubs in Delta depend on an indoor facility for continuation of the sport year round. A new indoor tennis facility in Delta would not only benefit the community as a whole by providing a healthy option for those who wish to exercise year round but also make Delta a more desirable place to raise a family and settle. Extra revenue would be filtered into our community by attracting major tournaments and by initiating development and training programs which would help mitigate the initial cost outlay. Tennis is a lifetime sport that can be played from age 5 or age 85 or more. There are not many sports that can make this claim. I believe th~ City of Delta should embrace this and take the opportunity to build a new indoor tennis facility which will benefit our community for many decades to come. Yours Truly Margaret Paterson th Ave Delta

7 Cc: Ian & Anne Short a> Thursday, January, 208 :5 PM Mayor & Council Cheryl Desaulniers Another Delta Indoor Sports Facility to Disappear Dear Mayor Jackson and Council, We will be incredibly disappointed if Delta is to lose its only indoor tennis facility, which will happen if a gaming facility is constructed to replace the Town and Country Inn. We started playing tennis at the T & C facility shortly after we moved to Delta in 973. We also became active members of Bayside Squash Club when it opened. As you know Delta has now lost that facility, a casualty of high Metro Vancouver home values. If development of the casino is approved there will no longer be a dedicated indoor racquet fae.ility in Delta, and we are asking that the casino approval is contingent on Delta ensuring that a replacement indoor tennis/racquets facility is constructed. We are long term residents of Delta, who have experienced the various social and health benefits of playing competitive sports in our community. Our own children grew up here playing a multitude of sports on Delta facilities, both indoor and outdoor and our entire family continues to be active in a variety of sports because we were all introduced to competitive sports early in life. I am sure you all recognise the many benefits of providing a variety of sports facilities for citizens of all ages. At the Town and Country, tennis is played by all ages of Delta residents, aged 4 to over 80 and the Junior Academy has over 50 youth members. Where will the over 300 members of this club play tennis? Please consider the ramifications of the casino proposal and ensure that there will continue to be an indoor tennis/racquets facility in Delta. Ian & Anne Short