A Feat of Clay : Recreation: Proposal to add seven courts in Camino Real Park angers neighbors. But the builder says it would put Ventura on the ‘national tennis map.’

Marv Kohlman says he’d put Ventura on the “national tennis map” if he’s allowed to build seven clay courts at Camino Real Park--but he may have a hard time getting the support of the City Council.

Three council members said Thursday that they have concerns about Kohlman’s plan to build the courts at the mid-town Ventura park after angry neighbors collected more than 1,800 signatures of people against the proposal.

Neighbors say new courts would cause more traffic and shrink the park’s open space.

“I’ve heard from an awful lot of people who don’t like the idea,” said Councilman Tom Buford. “Any time you hear from that many people, you have to look at what’s going on.”

Councilman Gary Tuttle, the council’s representative to the city’s Department of Parks and Recreation, agreed.

“I’ve got some serious questions that still need to be answered about the project,” Tuttle said. “Certainly the council will be surprised to hear there are some 1,800 signatures on the petitions.”

The seven-member City Council is expected to discuss the issue at its March 23 meeting.

Despite the neighbors’ objections, the city’s Parks and Recreation Commission voted 5-1 to endorse the project late Wednesday night.

Councilman James M. Monahan said he plans to vote against the measure, which calls for a complex of tennis courts, a pro shop, and more restrooms to be built on 1 1/2 acres of the 38-acre park at Dean Drive and Varsity Street.

“I like the idea of clay tennis courts, but I think it is the wrong place for them,” Monahan said.

“There are other places in Ventura where it would work out nicely. But I’m against it at that park.”

Council members Cathy Bean and Todd Collart and Mayor Greg Carson said Thursday that they needed to study the issue further before commenting.

Councilman Jack Tingstrom could not be reached for comment.

Tension has been slowly brewing among residents since Kohlman, the owner of Western Clay Tennis in Oxnard, first proposed the project several months ago.

More than 100 residents who packed Ventura City Hall on Wednesday night had mixed reactions to the plan, which calls for park-goers to pay $6 an hour to use the clay courts during the day and $8 an hour at night.

The park’s eight existing concrete courts would still be available free of charge, except to people who want to make reservations.

Tennis players could have hard courts set aside for $4 an hour during the day, $6 an hour at night.

Critics of the plan suggested that the city--which has allocated about $194,000 for the restrooms and pro shop--should spend its dollars elsewhere.

“Spend the money on park benches, more softball fields and tot lots,” Ventura resident Lawrence Holmquist urged the commission.

Others complained that the proposed complex would generate more traffic and noise.

“It’s very much overused now,” said Walter C. Frick, who has lived near the park for 33 years. “There is no parking.”

Many residents attacked the plan as a means to subsidize a private business venture.

“The city is turning over public property to a private enterprise,” said Robert Brown, a member of Pierpont Racquet Club in Ventura. “How is that going to benefit people?”

They also worried about the impact courts could have on nearby nesting monarch butterflies, but an environmental report has said the courts would have no effect.

Ventura resident Martin Marciel, who helped collect the signatures protesting the plan, vowed to fight the commission’s decision.

“We’ll go on to the City Council,” Marciel said. “We have tons of information that will go against what advocates of the plan were saying.”

Kohlman said he does not understand why the neighbors are so upset.

“What we give the city, you could not get unless you joined expensive clubs,” said Kohlman, who has built clay courts for the Sherwood Country Club near Thousand Oaks. “I’m knocking my head against the wall and saying, ‘Why can’t people see this as a good deal?’ . . . It will give Ventura an immediate position on the national tennis map.”

Under Kohlman’s plan, he would pay to build the courts.

In return, he would manage the courts and a pro shop under a concessionaire’s contract, paying the city a minimum annual rent of about $16,000 plus a percentage of the gross revenue.

Camino Real Park is the only city park featuring tennis courts.

“You have another unique recreation facility,” said Parks and Recreation Director Barbara Harison. “This provides a different option for people.”

She said the city would not be able to afford to build the clay courts itself.

Parks Commissioner LaVerne L. Arnold voted against the courts because he said he did not believe tax dollars should be spent for the benefit of a private business.

Supporters of the plan said the clay courts would benefit all tennis players and improve Ventura’s image in the tennis world.

“This is a great opportunity to practice close to home,” said Darren Potkey of Ventura, a nationally ranked junior tennis player.

Because there are no clay courts in Ventura, Potkey said he has to travel to Palm Springs to practice for clay court tennis competitions.

“The development of our junior players would soar,” he said.

On the East Coast, clay courts are made from a particular crushed rock and each requires 2,000 gallons of water a day to keep it resilient and minimize dust, Kohlman said.

But the new clay courts would be made from a decomposed granite found in Arizona, which needs only 200 gallons of water per day per court.

Kohlman also said clay courts are safer to play on than hard courts because the surface is easier on the human anatomy.

“The potential damage done to knees, shins, the back and neck is dramatically lessened,” Kohlman said.