‘Fred’ director, head pro selected

By JOHN MUNFORD
jmunford@TheCitizenNews.com

The Frederick Brown Jr. Amphitheater in Peachtree City may soon have a new director.

The city’s Tourism Association voted Wednesday night to extend an employment offer to Randy Angrisano of Beaumont, Tex., who has experience with event management in pro sports.

It was not clear by press time whether Angrisano would accept the association’s offer, said executive director Linda McCarthy.

It was also announced Wednesday that the association has named Ben Maes the head professional at the Peachtree City Tennis Center and that employment offers were being made to all current tennis pros working at the facility.

According to his resume, Angrisano has worked for SMG in Beaumont, Texas as assistant director of event services and event manager and for Contemporary Services Company in Jacksonville, Fla., as director of operations and branch manager. He was in charge of sales, customer service, logistics, training and security for seven Super Bowls and several pro golf tournaments.

Angrisano also coordinated the grand openings of Invesco Field in Denver, Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati and the Ford Complex in Beaumont, Tex.

Maes, who was the center’s Academy I Director and Director of Peachtree City Championships, was the best of the three candidates interviewed for the head pro position, said Steve Rapson, chairman of the city’s tourism association, which operates the venue.

Maes, a native of Hamm, Belgium, was previously director of tennis at the David Lloyd Leisure Club in Belfast, Ireland. He began his coaching career at the Waregem Happy Sports and Tennis Center under coach Carlos Rodrigues.

Maes grew up in the junior tennis world and was the top-ranked player in Belgium from age 10 until age 18.

Becky Timmis, a long-time member of the tennis center and a former member of the tennis center advisory committee when it was operated by the development authority, told the association at its Wednesday night meeting that the lengthy process for filling the tennis pro positions has been “self-destructive” to the tennis center and its pro staff.

Timmis said she thinks Maes will do an excellent job, but she also felt sorry that Rick Davison, the center’s director of coaching, wasn’t chosen as head pro.

“He is an invaluable asset and I truly hope that you understand that,” Timmis said.

Rapson told Timmis that the rest of the situation with the professionals should be resolved by the end of the meeting after the association met in executive session. Timmis said she was glad to hear that.

Rapson said he agreed with Timmis that the pros “have been on a roller coaster” due to the questions over how the positions would be filled.

“The pros do an awesome job, and you need to let them do that,” Timmis told the association.

“We’re trying to bring this to as rapid a conclusion as we can,” Rapson said.


		Friday, Dec. 3, 2004