Known for its year-round swim and tennis programs, the West Austin Athletic Club, 1024 Patterson Road, Austin, is set to close in September if the property's buyer receives site plan approval for a new residential project, club owner Susan Walsh said.

David Weekley Homes plans to build 9 single-family detached homes on the 9-acre tract, David Weekley Land Manager Ian Dietrich said. The one- and two-story homes will be a minimum of 3,500-square-feet on single-acre sites and cost $1 million–$2 million each, he said.

The proposed development in Eanes Independent School District—with students attending Barton Creek Elementary School, Westridge Middle School and Westlake High School—will be a factor that draws buyers, Dietrich said.

Although staffers have not finalized the architectural style of the proposed development, Patterson Court, Dietrich said the project would be built with contemporary Hill Country elements including courtyards and outdoor living spaces. The project will feature one gated entrance on Patterson Road, he said. A homeowners association for the development will probably be created, he said.

Dietrich said he is unsure what will be done with the existing swimming pools and tennis courts in the new development. He said he will be speaking with area real estate brokers to determine if the facilities would appeal to buyers on a community basis or if individual outdoor features are preferred.

Walsh and her husband, John Walsh, were in negotiations with David Weekley Homes for about a year before going under contract, Dietrich said.

"We're getting older and it's becoming harder to maintain this large of a facility," Susan Walsh said.

The Walsh family has been operating the West Austin Athletic Club since 1999, starting with a year-round swim and dive team before adding tennis courts in 2001, she said. In 2008, a four-lane 50-meter swimming pool was added to the site.

"We developed programs that we saw the community wanted and needed," she said.

Walsh said that at the time the complex was created, there were very few swimming pools or springboard diving clubs in the Austin area. About 1,200 youth are involved in West Austin Athletic Club's swim programs each year, and the group has trained and certified about 80 new lifeguards during its existence, she said.

"That's been the impact of West Austin Athletics [on the community]," Walsh said.