A group of Morris citizens has teamed up with the local school to rebuild the school's basketball court into a multi-sport outdoor facility.

Group spokesperson Susan Chartier says their plan is to upgrade the existing outdoor court at Morris School in addition to building a brand new court facility on school property that could accommodate a variety of sports activities for both students and local residents.

"We're calling it a multi-sport outdoor court project where we are going to include tennis and pickleball, but also basketball and badminton. Now we're no longer looking at just one court that we intend to rebuild but actually looking at adding a second because of the interest that the school has to get involved and give its students an opportunity for them to use two spaces instead of just one."

Chartier says the project has gained momentum, thanks in part to the COVID-19 health restrictions, which has made health and wellness a front-and-center issue for everyone.

She says even though the two courts would exist on school property, they would be constructed to serve all age groups in the community.

"There would be courts that will be accessible and open for individuals to use at no cost. So, the opportunity to have them as multi-sport facilities is going to be great. We're so excited about where this is going."

Chartier says they've received some money from a number of local businesses and private donors who support the concept.

The project will cost about $200,000 to complete and so far the group has raised just over $18,000.