Residents lob tennis proposal

CITY HALL — Residents upset about the lost Central Park tennis courts — demolished to make way for the new Adult Recreation Center — could soon have access to Glendale High School courts under a proposal Tuesday to the City Council.

The proposal features an estimated $900,000 in renovations, including improved lighting, disability access, parking, court resurfacing and new restrooms, to the six courts at the high school. The Glendale Unified School District has agreed to contribute $175,000 to the project.

The courts would be open to the public from 6 to 10 p.m. during the week and 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. on the weekends.

On Tuesday, the City Council will review an $86,284 contract with David Volz Design to prepare design and construction documents for the renovations.

The project was approved at an October special joint meeting of the City Council and Glendale Unified School District Board of Education.

If approved by the council Tuesday, parks officials said they hope to have the renovations completed by spring 2010.

The trade-off for the new senior center at Central Park has been contentious for years, pitting senior services advocates against tennis players who argue the downtown courts were a vital recreational resource.

Councilman John Drayman, who played tennis competitively throughout college, said he was disappointed by the loss of the tennis courts, but that the new $7.92-million Adult Recreation Center was a necessary trade-off.

“Losing any recreation facilities in the city is not a great thing, especially when we are losing them in the south part of the city,” he said.

But he expressed support for public access to the high school courts as a viable alternative.

“I’m thrilled that not far from there, we will be able to have upgraded facilities,” he said.

City parks have a total of 37 tennis courts, including eight at Fremont Park, said Parks, Recreation and Community Services Director George Chapiian. The alternative proposal to opening the high school courts was to add two courts at Fremont Park.

“But we already have eight there,” he said. “I think two more would have overwhelmed it.”

Harvey Pearson, who was among the staunchest critics of the Central Park plan, said he was encouraged by the proposal, but still wished the original courts could have been saved.

“Why not put the center somewhere else where they didn’t have to remove the tennis courts?” he said, adding that the later weekday hours could be an inconvenience to younger players.

“I would see people leaving the courts at 6 p.m.,” he said.

Drayman pointed to the proposal as another example of the city and school district working together to ease local issues, such as the opening of south Glendale school playgrounds to the public outside of school hours.

“We’ve been making some steady progress,” he said. “This will be one of the most visible examples of the joint cooperation between the school district and the city.”

 MELANIE HICKEN covers City Hall. She may be reached at (818) 637-3235 or by e-mail at melanie.hicken@latimes.com.