CONWAY — The Conway Area Tennis Association started out seeking a three-structure, $6 million indoor-outdoor tennis facility, but the association will settle for eight new courts, restrooms and a one-level building.
It brings to mind lyrics from The Rolling Stones: “You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, well you might find you get what you need.”
The association made a presentation last year to the Conway City Council for an indoor-outdoor tennis facility at Laurel Park on Prince Street, south of Conway High School.
Although then-Mayor Tab Townsell said he supported updated tennis courts, he was adamantly against a two-story facility in the green space at Laurel Park.
Members of the association and city officials seem to be in agreement that Conway doesn’t have enough public courts — it has eight, including four at Laurel Park — and the ones that exist are in poor shape.
Parks and Recreation Director Steve Ibbotson is one of those who agrees.
“The courts we have, they’re in disrepair because the subsurface is bad, and whenever you go out there and fix cracks, they reappear within a month,” he said. “So there’s no need in really putting any more money into them.”
A scaled-back plan has been accepted that includes eight new courts and a facility with restrooms that will allow for indoor viewing of the courts, as well as a pass-through building to get to the courts.
“We’re hoping it will be around $1.1 million to $2 million,” Ibbotson said.
Marilynn Nabholz of Conway, chairwoman of the association’s tennis-facility project, said that plan was option B.
The Conway City Council didn’t vote on the proposal a year ago, but it was clear that was the preferred option because it didn’t eat up as much green space in Laurel Park as the $6 million proposal, she said. Plus, the potential price tag was much less.
The existing courts would be torn out, and the new courts at Laurel Park would have a gate and “a security point” to enter, Ibbotson said. Either a part-time employee would be used for the facility, “or the city could enter into a contractual agreement with a pro,” he added.
“If you were to come to the tennis facility to play tennis, you would walk through a little building to get to the courts,” he said. “If we had tournaments, the tournament director could work out of that; they could have a place to restring racquets and stuff like that.”
There would be set hours of operation, he said, and the facility would be manned during those hours. Courts would be able to be reserved, which has not been available for city courts.
Requests for professional services, or bids, for the project have been advertised, and they are due Tuesday, the same day the Conway Tennis Association has its annual public meeting. The group will meet at 6 p.m. in the Hall of Honor Room on the second floor of the Hendrix College Wellness and Athletics Center, 1600 Harkrider St.
Ibbotson said he will attend the meeting to update the group on the bid proposals, as well as to answer questions. He said the proposals for professional services will be reviewed, and a recommendation will be presented to the Conway City Council.
“We’d love to see it done by the end of this year, but I don’t know that that will happen,” Ibbotson said.
Newly elected Mayor Bart Castleberry agreed that the tennis project is a worthy one for the city.
“The best example I can give you, I was driving on Prince Street one Saturday, and I’ll bet there were 40 children with tennis rackets in their hands lined up to learn how to play. It’s obviously very popular,” he said.
“There’s a good probability that the Conway High School tennis team will be using [the new facility] as well,” so Laurel Park is a good location, Castleberry said. “We’re taking RFQs (requests for quotations), and we’re moving forward with it.”
Nabholz said the tennis courts are in poor shape, and the city doesn’t have enough courts to host tournaments.
“This is just a start, but it’s a good start,” she said of the proposal. Nabholz said the association’s ultimate goal is to have indoor courts for year-round play.
In addition to the four courts at Laurel Park, the city has two courts at Gatling Park and two at Fifth Avenue Park.
Nabholz, who has been playing tennis for about 11 years, said players in North Little Rock and Little Rock “are just shocked” that Conway doesn’t have teams playing in Conway.
She said Conway players have to explain that the facilities just don’t exist. Nabholz said a city the size of Conway should have at least 50 tennis courts, according to the U.S. Tennis Association.
Ibbotson said he doesn’t think Conway needs 50 courts, but he sees the need for upgraded facilities.
“We definitely need more than we’ve got right now, playable courts,” he said.
Castleberry also said that tennis, like golf, is “an activity you can do your entire life.”
Ibbotson said the tennis-court project will be paid for with Advertising and Promotion funds.
However, Nabholz said the tennis association is working to gain nonprofit status and plans to apply for grants for the project, too.
“We want to do our part,” she said. “We’re still underserved, but this will be a great start.”
Senior writer Tammy Keith can be reached at (501) 327-0370 or tkeith@arkansasonline.com.