NORTHDALE — Northdale Golf & Tennis Club may need a new name.
The club, built in 1977, has always offered both golf and tennis. But it has already torn out its tennis courts to make way for a long-awaited driving range.
At its June 3 land-use meeting, the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners approved a request by course owner Vineet Kumar to build a netted driving range where seven tennis courts have been razed. According to county documents, the range will run alongside Northdale Boulevard, just right of the parking lot and clubhouse.
The vote was 6-0, with Commissioner Christine Miller absent.
Kumar, who spoke briefly, said the project will use tight netting and a landscaped buffer in keeping with the rest of the neighborhood to ensure balls cannot reach cars or nearby homes.
No one spoke against the range — or other planned improvements — in person or virtually. Instead, a few longtime residents voiced support. Kumar’s ownership group has already upgraded the clubhouse and other amenities, and residents said they are eager for more.
One opposition document in the meeting minutes came from a resident worried about noise.
“Past ownership seemed disinterested in doing anything of the kind and let it run down,” one resident wrote. “It’s great to see this ownership put significant resources into improving the golf course.”
District 2 Commissioner Ken Hagan, who lives in Northdale, set the proposal in motion after speaking about the course and the neighborhood. He said he “wholeheartedly” endorsed the project.
“I live down the street from this course,” Hagan said. “Over the years, I’ve seen the good times and the bad. The previous owners didn’t maintain it, and the new ownership wants to improve it. I’m glad to see that.”
The range will feature 12 to 15 covered hitting bays and run on Toptracer ball-tracking technology. Separately, pickleball courts not affiliated with the club have been added on the grounds next to the clubhouse.
The course, at 4417 Northdale Blvd., is a Ron Garl-designed, 18-hole, par-72 layout that measures 6,824 yards from the championship tees. Meeting documents did not disclose a timeline or cost for the range.