By Colleen Curran
Evergreen Racquet Club opened its doors in 1972, the result of tennis enthusiasts and community leaders in Bloomington/Normal putting together a business plan to provide winter tennis to Central Illinois. Twenty-five investors sharing a love for the game and armed with a loan from Corn Belt Bank, opened “Evergreen” just west of the airport on October 13 of that year.
After visiting clubs around the country, the group settled on a beautiful and functional design with six indoor tennis courts of the highest quality. Since that time, expansion plans included two more indoor courts, four outdoor courts, a fitness room and a racquetball court. One of the original investors said going in, that if it doesn’t make it as a Racquet Club, we can store airplanes in it since we are right next door to the airport!
Well, “The Racquet Club” DID make it, and forty-four years later, is a vibrant, thriving business recognized as an industry leader state-wide. Still locally owned and managed, ERC embraces “The Best Tennis Experience for Everyone”, as any of our members will gladly attest. It’s very much a “hometown” club, where everyone knows your name – Cheers! – with no pesky membership identification cards or badges.
Even though we have a long, storied history, ERC does not rest on its laurels. With 6 teaching professionals whose only careers are tennis, and a 7th pro with dual certification in personal training and tennis, we are able to offer top-notch drills, clinics and lessons. Our newly revitalized Junior Tennis Academy is second to none, as we have embraced and implemented the latest teaching techniques according to USTA principles and reviewed by top Youth Progression management in the USTA. Additionally, a significant investment was made this summer to replace all tennis lighting with custom LED fixtures. We now boast the most fixtures per court nationally for the best tennis experience around. Evergreen’s outstanding upstairs viewing lounge is now even better with no lights or support structures to peer through. Already enjoying significant savings in energy, equipment and maintenance, we passed those savings directly on to our members in lower membership fees and court rates.
Our new logo reflects what we are: the best of the past and present and solid investments in the future. It is kind of a retro, “Route 66” feel with a modern twist. From true beginners, to Special Olympics athletes, to Illinois Wesleyan tennis teams, to state and national champions, and everyone in between, members come to Evergreen Racquet Club to relax, exercise, compete, watch, improve, socialize and play the game they adore. ALL are invited to join the fun – we bring friends together!
Evergreen Racquet Club, located at 3203 E. Washington St. in Bloomington, is a state-of-the-art tennis center with courts available for group play as well as a full line of lessons, clinics and leagues. For more information, call 309-662-4361 or visit them online at www.erctennis.com or on Facebook.