HENDERSONVILLE – Proposals made earlier this summer for renovating and reconfiguring Whitmire Activity Center in Hendersonville’s Toms Park could impact its ability to host the city’s shuffleboard club, an important social institution for the region’s senior community, according to members.
Patton Pool and the Whitmire Activity Center were both heavily damaged in Tropical Storm Helene last year and architects contracted by the city of Hendersonville are in the process of designing options to renovate them.
All potential plans call for reducing the number of shuffleboard courts from 14 to a maximum of four, designers said in a public input session at the Henderson County Public Library July 15, where officials were met with heated comments from shuffleboard players at several points.
Hendersonville is “the shuffleboard capital of the mountains,” Jay Fitzpatrick, President of the Hendersonville Shuffleboard Club and 2009 national singles champion, told Hendersonville City Council in a Aug. 27 meeting.
The National Shuffleboard Association requires a minimum of 14 courts to hold a national tournament of any kind, Fitzpatrick told City Council.
“Once you lose the national tournament… we could never get it back, and that would be a shame,” Fitzpatrick said, noting that New Jersey has been looking to host the tournament.
Hendersonville is the only place in the U.S. to hold men’s and women’s singles, doubles and mixed doubles, he told the Times-News after his presentation.
The city will hold those tournaments Sept. 5-13, according to the National Shuffleboard Association’s website.
Hendersonville held the world championships in 1999.
The shuffleboard club paid for construction of all the courts, plus a $35,000 pavilion over 10 courts, out of pocket with an agreement to maintain the courts privately, Fitzpatrick said.
Shuffleboard is ideal for seniors who might have mobility issues because it’s less physically demanding than other sports and doesn’t require standing for long periods, he said.
“Our shuffleboard club has had players who went out on the court with a cane in one hand and a cue stick in the other,” he said.
Many members join the club for its community and social interaction, not necessarily to play competitively. Some members, including a woman who left the $35,000 to build the pavilion over the courts, didn’t play at all.
“We consider ourselves one of, if not the best, senior activity destinations in Hendersonville,” Fitzpatrick said.
A city of Hendersonville spokesperson couldn’t be reached for comment by deadline.
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George Fabe Russell is the Henderson County Reporter for the Hendersonville Times-News. Tips, questions, comments? Email him at GFRussell@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: Hendersonville shuffleboard players push for retaining courts