Public tennis courts 7 and 8 have been out of use since February.
Went Down in February, Still Need to be Repaired
In February, a large sinkhole opened in the Frontera parking lot by the tennis courts below the Field of Dreams at the Palisades Recreation Center.
Even though the sinkhole was repaired months ago, tennis courts 7 and 8 (adjacent to Potrero Canyon) have remained closed and are still in need of repair.
At the Park Advisory Board meeting on July 17, tennis center director Michael Tomas said he had been told that repair work was done underneath the courts, but the surfaces had not been redone.
A reader wrote to Circling the News on July 26 that he had heard that the Palisades Tennis Center had offered to pay for the resurfacing just to get the courts up and running, but that L.A. Rec and Parks had refused. “This public asset has sat there unusable for the entire summer. Typical, mind-numbing bureaucracy,” he wrote.
CTN contacted Tomas, who responded in a July 31 email: “No, we did not offer to pay to resurface courts 7 and 8, perhaps the reader was mistaken.”
Tomas added, “Yes, it appears that progress repairing courts 7 & 8 has been slow. Unfortunately, I have heard no news on any definitive dates on when they will be completed.”
CTN reached out to Recreation and Parks Director Michael Shull and RAP Commissioner Joe Halper, who lives in the Palisades. Shull responded in a July 31 email: “The tennis courts because of the drainage infrastructure involves other Departments. I have included our Assistant General Manager, Cathie Santo Domingo, to provide status.”
In a July 31 email, Rec and Parks Maintenance Supervisor Kent Hesselgrave wrote: “The Tennis Courts are being restored as part of the B.O.E. Emergency Storm Drain Project. Although I do not have direct control of this group, I contacted CM and asked him to expedite repairs. I relayed the patrons concerns for the expedient restoration of these courts. They were having difficulty securing the contractor for court repairs, he was working on alternates and RAP approval.”
Court 8 was not dug up for the repairs and looks playable if someone would clean it up.
I’d like to know what the City thinks is wrong with that court. Overall, the lower parking lot and Court 7 look like a work in progress, but no work seems to be going on. As a regular player, I think it’s fair to say that the City has let us down.
The Board of Recreation and Park Commissioners (Board) consists of five Commissioners that serve on a voluntary basis and include Nicole Chase, Sylvia Patsaouras, Lynn Alvarez, Pilar Diaz and Pacific Palisades resident Joe Halper.
Two Regular Meetings of the Board of Recreation and Park Commissioners (Board) are scheduled on the first and third Wednesdays at 9:30 a.m. of each month.
The Board has two committees: The Facility Repair and Maintenance Commission Task Force and the Concession Commission Task Force. The Facility Repair meetings are generally scheduled at 8:30 a.m. prior to the start of each Regular Board Meeting.
What if all tennis players contacted the Recreation and Board of Park Commissioners, and cc’d Lisa Cahill (Councilman Mike Bonin’s Field Deputy) about the inaction on the courts?
The Commissioners’ email is rap.commissioners@lacity.org and the phone number is (213) 482-6941.
Cahill’s email is lisa.cahill@lacity.org.