Hall of Fame Museum – a site is finally picked

Chuck Vasoll reported on the development for PTM:

It’s been six years since the Platform Tennis Museum and Hall of Fame Foundation was established with the mission of locating a site and creating a home for the sport’s memorabilia and a place to recognize those who have been selected to receive the sport’s highest honor, induction into the Platform Tennis Hall of Fame. A major portion of that mission has now been accomplished. The site will be at the Centercourt Athletic Club (CAC) in Chatham, New Jersey.

The plan for a Hall of Fame Museum dedicated to the sport has been ongoing since 1965 when the first individuals who had major achievements in the sport were recognized with an “Honor Award.”

In 1998 the “Honor Award” designation was changed to “The Platform Tennis Hall of Fame” and all prior Honor Award recipients were recognized as members of the Hall of Fame.

The Foundation was formed in 2002 as a separate entity from the ruling body of the sport, the American Platform Tennis Association (APTA), and applied for and received tax-exempt status in 2004. This enabled contributions to its efforts to be deductible on the donor’s income tax returns.

The Foundation’s Board of Trustees then turned its sights to finding a location for a Hall of Fame building. There were several locations considered in the process of this search, most notably at the Fox Meadow Tennis Club in Scarsdale, NY. It is known as the “Home of Platform Tennis” and seemed like the logical place because the inventors of the game, Fessenden Blanchard and James Cogswell, Jr. were members and the first club court was installed there in 1931.

Although Fox Meadow Tennis Club seemed like a natural location, the terms of the project were unable to be agreed upon between the Club’s Board and the Foundation’s Trustees.

As the search continued and other sites were considered, in a casual conversation, Jim McCready, a former Executive Director of the APTA and a racquets pro in New Jersey, suggested to Robert Brown, Foundation Chairman, that the Foundation should contact Clay Bibbee, of CAC, a partner and its General Manager.

The CAC was undergoing a major renovation of its facilities under new ownership and its plans included four platform tennis courts and an aggressive platform tennis program.

Brown contacted Bibbee and discussions began in February 2008. Foundation President Rich Lombard and Treasurer Jo Rogers visited the site with Brown and they reported back positively to the Board of Trustees of the Foundation.

After four months of negotiation, an agreement was drawn up and signed by both parties on June 20, 2008.

Brown indicated that approximately 500 square feet on the second floor of the Centercourt clubhouse would be used to honor Hall of Fame inductees and to display memorabilia of the sport.

Foundation President Richard Lombard said that the location of the Hall of Fame at CAC was an ideal setting in view of its central location, attractive building, and sizeable athletic base.

CAC partner and Managing Director, Clay Bibbee, said, “We are delighted to have the Platform Tennis Hall of Fame at CAC, and we’re looking forward to a mutually beneficial, long term relationship with the Foundation.”

Although a lot of work remains to be accomplished before the Museum and Hall of Fame can be opened to the public, a specific site is now assured. Throughout the discussions, the CAC has been very enthusiastic about the prospect of having the Hall of Fame on their site.

The Museum will capture the history of the sport, the spirit of today’s play and the passion people have for the game past and present.Included will be the 73 past and present members of The Hall of Fame and 26 categories of National Championships.

The history and increasing vibrancy of the sport will be featured in a series of videos starting with the early days of the game with commentary from Molly (Blanchard) Ware and Do (Cogswell) Deland, (daughters of the founders, Fessenden Blanchard and James Cogswell), historic matches, current day play, commentary from present day junior players and a spirited look back from a group of players currently over 80 years old.

There will be additional videos developed on an ongoing basis to keep the Museum current. It will be an exciting place to visit with multiple viewing decks and a large reception area. The Museum will also feature historical displays of equipment and prized photographs. To ensure an on-going vitality, the Museum will continually update all aspects of the displays and feature the latest happenings of the wonderful sport of platform tennis.

Now, the top priority on the Foundation’s agenda is a fundraising program, to fund the initial investments in the project, to provide an endowment for future operating expenses, and the collection of memorabilia from the sport’s participants and Hall of Fame inductees.

These efforts are expected to take 12 to 18 months to accomplish. In the meantime, the CAC has agreed to conduct several tournaments for the APTA in the 2008-09 season. The most important of these events will be the Senior Men’s National Championship for ages 45+, 55+ and 65+ in February 2009.

The Foundation is also in the process of constructing a web site where progress on the project can be viewed as it is updated. The address is platformtennishalloffame.org. The web site is planned to be fully opened in September.

In addition to Robert Brown, Richard Lombard and Joseph Rogers, other members of the Foundation’s Board of Trustees are David Childs, Alice Duff, Tim McAvoy, Howard Patterson, Charles Updike and Charles Vasoll.

Source: Platform Tennis Magazine, Vol. 10, Issue 1, September, 2008