The Ocean Pines Racquet Center on Manklin Creek Road. JACK CHAVEZ/BAYSIDE GAZETTE

By Jack Chavez, Staff Writer

(Dec. 15, 2022) The Ocean Pines Racquet Sports Committee is looking forward to the possibility of  hiring a manager to take over the Racquet Center on Manklin Creek Road.

During its meeting on Dec. 8, the committee discussed how a full-time manager could help the already popular center, committee chair Susan Morris said.

“What we need is a manager to bring everything (together),” she said. “We need even more activity, more fun, lots more activities in both paddle(ball) and tennis to bring it up to the level of our pickleball people. What we’ve found in the last 18 months is people have been drifting and moving from one sport to another. A lot of pickleball players come to play paddle(ball), paddle(ball) to tennis or pickle(ball). There’s really a lot of activity there. We want more.”

Morris said she envisions a manager would be the person who brings the know-how and “education” to the area to pique the interest of active people inside and outside of Ocean Pines.

“There’s going to be someone who has all three sports and can help us grow and bring more,” she said. “Hopefully, we’re going to advertise out of Ocean Pines to bring more sports people here.

“This is the East Coast. We’ve got pools and racquet centers and golf courses and beaches and we want to bring more people in. We want some clinics to come in for paddle(ball), sometime during the year to bring outside people, the same way they do with pickleball. Hopefully, we can do these things but we need the manager first.”

Morris said that Recreation and Parks Director Debbie Donahue estimated that the position could be filled by spring.

Another item discussed was the recent racquet sports survey in which Pines residents made clear that they’re happy to come and participate but find that the building itself is “in need,” Morris said.

“It certainly could use some uplift. Because things have been so busy in the summer we could use some restrooms. That’s something that came across on the survey. Restrooms, parking and upgrades to the building.”

“It’s a solid building but it looks a little sad.”