{"id":696682,"date":"2026-06-11T00:31:24","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T00:31:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/696682\/"},"modified":"2026-06-11T00:31:24","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T00:31:24","slug":"more-than-2500-people-sign-petition-opposing-seasonal-enclosure-at-astoria-park-tennis-courts-qns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/696682\/","title":{"rendered":"More than 2,500 people sign petition opposing seasonal enclosure at Astoria Park tennis courts \u2013 QNS"},"content":{"rendered":"

More than 2,500 people have signed an online petition<\/a> against a proposed private seasonal enclosure at the Astoria Park Tennis Courts, which supporters say would expand access to the courts in colder winter months.<\/p>\n

NYC Parks is strongly considering issuing a Request for Proposal for a seasonal enclosure at the courts, citing strong community interest in the initiative. NYC Parks officials said the department was considering a privatized concession model after the successful introduction of models in Cunningham Park and Alley Pond Park.<\/p>\n

Officials also pointed to a petition in favor of the enclosure, which has received 336 signatures at the time of writing.\n<\/p>\n

However, a petition in opposition to the measure, which has received 2,516, argues that a seasonal enclosure would mirror issues at a tennis bubble in McCarren Park, where players face hourly rates between $50-100.<\/p>\n

Skeptics also pointed to how the McCarren seasonal bubble is in operation from mid-October to mid-April, overlapping with the official outdoor season, which runs from the first Saturday in April through Thanksgiving.<\/p>\n

Parks officials insisted that some courts would not be covered by the seasonal enclosure, leaving some courts available for all-around use. Opponents, however, said the enclosure would cover eight courts, leaving a maximum of six courts free for year-round use. That figure, they said, would not be enough to cope with demand on warm days suitable for outdoor tennis.<\/p>\n

Chris DeMino, an Astoria<\/a> resident and frequent user of the courts who signed the petition opposing the measure, said local players want the courts to remain open to all players, \u201cnot just a select few who can afford to play there.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also raised concerns about a private company using public infrastructure to turn a profit and insisted that if a company wishes to run a private tennis facility, it should rent and convert a warehouse in nearby Long Island City.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf they want to put up a (tennis) bubble, I\u2019m totally for it\u2026 but maybe do it somewhere that\u2019s not already open to the public,\u201d DeMino said.\n<\/p>\n

He is also concerned that the enclosure would encroach on the six courts left open to the public through facilities such as restrooms, further reducing the number of free-to-use outdoor courts.\n<\/p>\n

However, Parks officials said the RFP would seek a requirement that the winning bid carry out improvements of the courts, such as resurfacing and lighting, which would provide more playable hours during the outdoor season. Parks will additionally seek low-cost or no-cost access and youth programming as part of the RFP.<\/p>\n

\u201cParks is strongly considering a Request For Proposal for a seasonal tennis court enclosure at Astoria Park in response to strong community interest, with the goal of expanding public access and improving facilities while preserving the park\u2019s open space,\u201d a Parks Department spokesperson said in a statement.<\/p>\n

\"PhotoResurfacing is required at some courts. Photo by Shane O\u2019Brien<\/p>\n

Lena Wu, who started the petition<\/a> in favor of the enclosure, said the measure would help provide badly-needed funding for the courts, stating that conditions at the facility have deteriorated significantly over the past five years. Wu added that she does not believe the city would be able to provide funds to restore and improve the courts without engaging a private operator.<\/p>\n

\u201cNew York City parks would never have the resources to maintain these courts,\u201d she said.\n<\/p>\n

Wu also asserted that winter weather in the city is mostly not conducive to playing outdoor tennis.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cThis past winter was crazy. Even when the weather was \u2018warmer,\u2019 the wind was insane.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Wu also believes that the addition of more seasonal enclosures can help lower prices at existing winter courts around the city by increasing supply to meet demand.\n<\/p>\n

But a significant number of people are against the idea, with DiMino adding that it is almost impossible to get a slot at the McCarren enclosure because of private clinics.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes you can\u2019t even get a court at all,\u201d DiMino said. \u201cThe rates are as high as $100 an hour, which is a lot of money for the average person.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is an incentive for clubs to jack up the rates even more,\u201d he added. \u201cI just don\u2019t think the bubble will be in the best interest of everyone. It\u2019s only going to serve a small niche of people.\u201d<\/p>\n

DiMino \u2013 and the online petition \u2013 have also raised concerns that the enclosure has the potential to become a year-round installation and said the city could \u201cbend the rules\u201d if it sees significant cash flow coming in.<\/p>\n

The petition further raised concerns that trees would be cut down in order to make room for the enclosure. Parks officials said the RFP would stipulate that no trees can be removed to facilitate the enclosure.<\/p>\n

\"PhotoPhoto by Shane O\u2019Brien<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Richard Khuzami, chair of Community Board 1\u2019s Parks, Recreational and Cultural Committee, told a CB1 meeting last month that the community board had outlined a number of conditions for approving a seasonal enclosure, including a requirement that trees must not be damaged to facilitate it. Khuzami said other conditions included a mandated restroom and that 4-6 courts be left available as free options.<\/p>\n

Still, the petition calls on the Parks Department to withdraw plans for a private enclosure, calling for the establishment of a non-profit tennis foundation that would work in partnership with NYC Parks. DiMino pointed to the Fort Greene Tennis Association as a suitable model, noting that the non-profit had made use of community fundraising and USTA grants to resurface all six courts in the park at a cost of $348,000.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur priorities would include resurfacing the courts every few years, keeping the nets nice and new and acquiring maintenance tools,\u201d Di Mino said.\n<\/p>\n

Wu, however, questioned whether a non-profit would be able to consistently raise funds to provide continuous upkeep.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cCommunity fundraising and grants are not guaranteed,\u201d Wu said. \u201cAnd these are not one-time costs.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Wu also alleged that she attempted to post her petition in an Astoria tennis group on Facebook but was blocked from doing so by admins, who are opposed to the seasonal enclosure.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s disappointing,\u201d Wu said. \u201cI just thought fellow tennis players would be interested.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

DiMino, meanwhile, expressed fears that privatized tennis courts would prove prohibitive for low-income and first-time players.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cNew York City is about everyone having an opportunity to play in the park,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"More than 2,500 people have signed an online petition against a proposed private seasonal enclosure at the Astoria…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":696683,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[72],"tags":[33110,99,428],"class_list":["post-696682","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tennis","tag-daily-newsletter","tag-sports","tag-tennis"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/696682","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=696682"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/696682\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/696683"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=696682"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=696682"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=696682"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}