SR 06:054 - Laserfiche WebLink

Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council: BACKGROUND On May 17,2005, the City Council approved an agreement with Lifetime Tennis, Inc. to manage tennis operations at Tennis and Community Park. In addition, the Council considered several options proposed by the City/School District Liaison Committee regarding alternatives to increase available court space. This was in response to inquires made at a number of public meetings about the potential for additional tennis courts on the Bernal Property, and a perceived lack of adequate lighted tennis courts. The Council requested that the Parks and Recreation Commission review and provide recommendations regarding the potential lighting of the two (2) tennis courts at Pleasanton Middle School (PMS), and implementation of an "on demand" court reservation system at the high school courts during times when other courts are unavailable. The Commission considered this matter at its regularly scheduled meeting on July 14, 2005. Staff researched initial cost estimates for installing lights at PMS, including the potential upgrading of the court surface consistent with the quality at Tennis and Community Park. The estimated cost for a lighting system was $51,000, and $41,000 for court upgrades, a total of approximately $92,000. Prior to investing in such a large capital improvement, however, the Commission supported the collecting of data regarding the number of players impacted by a lack of available courts (particularly lighted) at Tennis and Community Park. The Commission requested that the review be conducted for three (3) months (July 15 - October 2005), with staff reporting the findings at the November 2005 meeting. It was also recommended that, if the City were to install lights, consideration be given to a coin-operated system. This would be consistent with the current practice at other lighted facilities (Upper Bernal Field, Tennis and Community Park; Softball Complex), where users pay fees for the use of lights. Attached for the Council's review (Attachment 1) are the results of the court availability data collected from July 15 through October 15. During this period (102 days), a total of 393 players were unable to access a court, as requested, at Tennis and Community Park. This represents an average of 3.3 players per day, although the most impacted periods were Monday-Friday evenings (7:00-9:00 PM), and Saturday mornings (9:00 AM-12:00 Noon). These periods are generally the prime time for leagues and group lessons, and the designated drop-in courts are typically in high demand. Of the approximately 80 times that players were impacted during evening play, 37% were required to wait '12 hour; 42% up to 1 hour; and 21 % 1 Y2 hours (or no court was available). There were 30 instances during daylight hours when courts were not available, but it is unclear whether players were willing to utilize courts at PMS, Fairlands Park, Muirwood Park, or the "on demand" system implemented through the high schools. An average of 3.3 players turned away at a public tennis facility with ten (10) courts and open over 12 hours per day does not represent an excessive number. What is not reflected, however, SR 06:054 Page 2