Bev Murray Real Estate

What Buyers Should Know About the History Behind Bath + Racquet Residences & Club

For decades, the Bath & Racquet Club was one of the best-known tennis properties in Sarasota. Located at 2170 Robinhood Street just south of downtown, it became a regular part of life for local players, families, and members who used the courts, clubhouse, and social spaces throughout the year.

Even now, the name still carries recognition because this was not just a club people had heard of. It was a place many Sarasota residents actually used and remembered.

Bath + Racquet Residences & Club is now giving the property a new chapter, but the identity of the site is still closely tied to its long role in Sarasota’s tennis and social scene. For buyers, that makes this more than just another new residential project. It is a well-known Sarasota property with a history people already connect to.

      Opened in 1969, the Bath & Racquet Club became one of Sarasota’s best-known tennis properties and remains a recognizable part of the local conversation today.

The Bath & Racquet name still means something in Sarasota, and that matters to buyers.

When the Bath & Racquet Club opened in 1969, Sarasota was continuing to grow as a year-round community, not only a seasonal destination. The club quickly became part of that local growth. With 29 green clay courts, pools, and an active clubhouse, it offered a setting that supported both competitive play and everyday social use.

People came for league matches, junior development, regular practice, and the kind of repeated weekly use that turns a club into part of a city’s rhythm.

The club also had a real place in tennis history. In April 1973, it hosted the First Federal of Sarasota Open, also known as the Virginia Slims of Sarasota, on its outdoor green clay courts. Chris Evert won the singles title, and Martina Navratilova also competed there, which gave the property visibility that reached well beyond Sarasota.

That tournament history still matters, but so does the local side of the story. The Bath & Racquet Club stayed familiar because it remained part of everyday Sarasota life for years after that.

The location has always been one of the property’s biggest advantages.

The location has always been part of the story. The 13-acre site sits between South Tamiami Trail and Siesta Drive in a part of Sarasota that connects easily to downtown, Sarasota Memorial Hospital, and the route to Siesta Key.

That gave the club everyday convenience when it was active, and it also helps explain why the property remained such a visible redevelopment site after the club’s closure.

In a city like Sarasota, a property this large and this well located was always going to draw interest once its original use ended. What makes this one different is that it already had a built-in identity. People did not need to be introduced to the site from scratch. They already knew where it was, what it had been, and why it mattered locally.

The redevelopment is giving the site a new future without losing what made it familiar.

The new version of the property is not trying to erase what came before it. Instead, the redevelopment is leaning into the site’s racquet-sports history while changing how the property will function day to day.

Bath + Racquet Residences & Club is planned as a residential community built around a private club experience, with tennis, pickleball, padel, fitness, dining, wellness amenities, and social spaces playing a central role in the overall concept. Buyers who want a closer look at the project can also review Bath + Racquet Residences & Club information here.

A quick look at how the property has evolved

• 1969 — The Bath & Racquet Club opens in Sarasota
• 1973 — The property hosts the Virginia Slims of Sarasota
• 2021 — The original club closes
• Today — The site is being redeveloped as Bath + Racquet Residences & Club

Current project information points to 256 residences, four-story buildings, and a club-centered layout designed around active living rather than a standard condominium model. The development team has also emphasized continuity with the original property through preserved oak trees and through the ongoing racquet identity of the site itself.

Tommy Haas, former world No. 2, is involved as Global Ambassador and Club Curator, which gives the tennis side of the project a stronger connection to the sport than most residential developments could offer.

Buyers here are looking at more than just another new condominium address.

From a buyer’s perspective, the appeal here is not only that the property is new. It is that the project brings together several things that do not often come in one package. It has a recognizable Sarasota location, a strong recreational identity, private club amenities, and a name that already means something to many people in the area.

What stands out about the Bath + Racquet Residences

• A long-recognized Sarasota location
• A private club concept built around racquet sports
• Tennis, pickleball, padel, fitness, and dining amenities
• A project identity tied to a familiar local property

That gives it a different kind of presence than a project that is starting with a blank slate. Some buyers will be drawn to the tennis, pickleball, and wellness focus. Others will care more about the convenience of being near downtown, the hospital district, and Siesta Key while still living in a community built around amenities and shared spaces.

      This is not just another new condominium address in Sarasota.

The history of the site helps explain why this project continues to stand out.

For buyers looking at Bath + Racquet Residences & Club today, the history is not just background detail. It helps explain why the project feels more established than many new developments. The original club had decades of visibility in Sarasota, and the new version is building from that rather than replacing it with something completely disconnected.

Sarasota has no shortage of new development, but not every project has a story people already know. Bath + Racquet does. For someone considering a residence there, that history adds context to the location, the branding, and the lifestyle the project is trying to create.

If you are interested in buying at Bath + Racquet Residences & Club or exploring nearby opportunities, we would be glad to help.

If Bath + Racquet Residences & Club has caught your attention, we can help you look more closely at the residences, the setting, and what makes this property stand out in Sarasota. You can also browse current Bath + Racquet Residences & Club listings here or review more information about the community here. If you are also interested in nearby opportunities, our team can help you explore those as well.