The town of Sandwich is aiming to transform an old driving range into a new recreational center.

Sandwich Hollows Golf Club will allow a developer to lease 7.4 acres for recreational purposes. The uses can include anything from an indoor sports dome to a tennis club, health club, outdoor fields or a mix of uses, but the facility must be a place for recreation.

The town currently has no centralized field complex, and the closest private indoor sports dome is in Plymouth, a far commute for youth or adult sports clubs coming from down Cape, said Douglas Lapp, Sandwich assistant town manager. The golf course property at 1 Round Hill Road in East Sandwich is an ideal place for such a sports complex, Lapp added.

"We’ve identified the need for additional recreational facilities on the Cape," Lapp told Banker & Tradesman. "Groups all use the school fields, but they’re overused and can’t be maintained as they’d like. We’ve always had the dream of having regular municipal fields for sport groups. We have the land, but it’s been tied up for golf purposes only. We went to the state Legislature to get a special law enacted for additional uses at the golf course recently, and we got local support for it."

The town would prefer a lease up to 30 years, but will consider proposals that contain an additional option to renew for an additional term of up to 30 years. The town has plans to develop several parcels around the 7.4 acres into sports fields. However, any proposals for the old driving range would be strengthened by the inclusion of sports fields, Lapp said.