A new multi-million pound tennis club, which will also house a Technogym fitness studio, is set to open in Gillingham in March.

The £8m Avenue Lawn Tennis Club will cover 172,000sq ft (16,000sq m) and is one mile away from the current club, which will close once the new centre opens.

The facility will have 14 tennis courts - three indoor acrylic, five floodlit artificial clay, two artificial grass and four grass. It will also have three badminton courts, a gymnasium and studio, three meeting and conference rooms, a restaurant and health suite, which will consist of sauna and steam rooms, heated pods and feature showers.

The tennis and badminton courts have been designed and constructed by Trevor May Contractors in partnership with building firm WW Martin.

Technogym is supplying the gym equipment, which includes 27 cardio and 10 resistance machines. The gym will have a strength area, with an Olympic half rack smith machine and dumbbells, and a functional training zone that will include an Omnia-8 frame machine. The spin room will be kitted out with Technogym cycle equipment.

Dalesauna will be supplying sauna, steam, shower, heated pod and ice machine products.

The club plans to target the family market, with a ‘tennis for all’ message and will provide coaching programmes for three years of age upwards.

Tennis memberships will be £25-£35 a month, with gym members paying £45-£60 and Platinum affiliation, which will include tennis and gym access, costing £55-£70.

Owner Colin Jarvis said: “There will be no tennis club or similar for over 30 miles, and for this reason I believe we will attract members from further afield than just the Medway towns. We want to focus on customer experience and become a lifestyle choice by offering a premium facility and service. I believe we will differentiate from the local competition by combining racquets, fitness and a premium restaurant.”