We look at why Judy Murray has decided to scrap plans for a legacy tennis centre in honour of sons Andy and Jamie at Park of Keir near Dunblane.
There will be no sporting legacy for Sir Andy Murray in his hometown of Dunblane – at least not in the way his mum Judy had hoped.
Plans to build a £20 million sports centre on land near Park of Keir, aimed at growing the sports of tennis, pickleball and padel, have been shelved.
The plans – driven by Judy Murray and inspired by the success of her sons Andy and Jamie – included housing, indoor and outdoor courts, gym, exercise studio, soft play, golf facilities and a multi-use games area (MUGA).
On the surface, securing a long lasting tribute to one of Scotland’s greatest ever sportsmen feels like a no-brainer. But for over a decade the project has had to contend with local opposition, bureaucratic red tape and spiralling costs.
So, why did Sir Andy Murray’s legacy project falter?
Planning wrangle
When the Murray Play Foundation announced on Monday (August 26) that it was shelving its plans for the Murray legacy centre, the charity cited a “lengthy and uncertain planning process” and “protracted discussions with governing bodies” as reasons for giving up on the project.
Park of Keir has long been a controversial piece of land – a greenbelt between the towns of Bridge of Allan and Dunblane.
The site has been the subject of various planning applications, spanning 30 years. Proposals have included a hotel, a golf course, housing and more.
Then, in 2013 – the year Sir Andy ended Britain’s 77-year wait for a home grown men’s Wimbledon champion – fresh plans backed by Judy Murray were lodged.
They included a new tennis and golf centre, a museum, indoor and outdoor tennis courts, a nine hole golf course with a clubhouse, a hotel, a sports pitch, new access roads, car parking and more – all enabling a housing development.
