BURBANK : Local Tennis Pro to Create New Center

The Burbank Park and Recreation Board named a local tennis professional to create and run a tennis center for the city, despite concerns raised by residents about the privatization of public courts.

“I want to win these people over and show them it can be done,” said Steve Starleaf, a native of Burbank who became an All-American college tennis player in Texas. Starleaf was selected from a field of six candidates, and the City Council must approve the selection and negotiate a contract.

“Many young people are sports-oriented but don’t have the money to pay for it,” said Burbank resident Christine Kiva, one of a handful of residents who voiced reservations about a professional taking over the program at McCambridge Park. The park has a 2,600-square-foot multipurpose building and eight tennis courts--about half of all the public tennis courts in the city.

Starleaf has proposed charging Burbank residents $3 an hour to play on the courts after 4 p.m. on weekdays and before 4 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Play would be free at other times. Non-residents would pay $4. However, prices and the specifics of the center’s operation are yet to be determined.