{"id":872249,"date":"2026-10-06T01:36:17","date_gmt":"2026-10-06T01:36:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/872249\/"},"modified":"2026-10-06T01:36:17","modified_gmt":"2026-10-06T01:36:17","slug":"west-palm-tennis-turmoil-nears-resolution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/872249\/","title":{"rendered":"West Palm tennis turmoil nears resolution"},"content":{"rendered":"

Deal would add fees to play and could oust longtime pros.<\/p>\n

\"WestTennis players in February at the South Olive Tennis Center in West Palm Beach. (Photo: Bill DiPaolo\/Stet)<\/p>\n

West Palm Beach is close to inking a deal that would cost at least one \u2013 possibly two \u2013 popular tennis<\/a> pros their jobs and force residents for the first time to pay to play on courts that were recently rebuilt with millions in tax dollars.<\/p>\n

The deal, which rocked the city\u2019s tight-knit tennis community, spawned bid protests and a lawsuit<\/a>, will turn the operations of tennis centers at South Olive, Howard and Gaines parks over to Let\u2019s Play Tennis, a Palm Beach-based firm that wasn\u2019t the city\u2019s top choice.<\/p>\n

Once a proposed three-year contract<\/a> is finalized, the city will immediately turn over the operations of Howard and Gaines parks tennis centers to the company, headed by Cameron Lickle<\/a>, a former tennis professional and a standout at the U.S. Naval Academy.<\/p>\n

Lickle and his business partner, Gulf Stream resident Kevin Anderson<\/a>, who was once the No. 5 tennis player in the world, would take over the South Olive Tennis Center in May, according to a draft version of the contract obtained from the city.<\/p>\n

\"SouthTennis pro Skip Jackson urges West Palm Beach city commissioners Dec. 8 to keep him on. (Screenshot: WPB Channel 18)<\/p>\n

To settle a lawsuit filed by Skip Jackson after his bid to operate the centers was rejected, city officials agreed that the longtime director of the South Olive Tennis Center could stay until the end of the upcoming season of the women\u2019s tennis teams that are based at the park. The season, which begins this week, ends April 30.<\/p>\n

Once Let\u2019s Play Tennis takes over, the days of free tennis will end at Gaines and South Olive parks.<\/p>\n

Paying to play tennis<\/p>\n

A fee schedule established by the city would force city residents to pay $6 an hour at Gaines Park and $9 an hour at South Olive to play during peak hours. Reduced rates would be offered during non-peak hours, which are in the middle of the day. Nonresidents would pay nearly double.<\/p>\n

Annual permits, costing as much as $1,380 for unlimited play at all three centers, would also be available.<\/p>\n

Michael Williams, a retired city firefighter who has been organizing tennis clinics at Gaines Park for years, said he has many questions about the city\u2019s plans to bring in new people to manage the centers.<\/p>\n

But he was unequivocal about the plans to charge residents to play on hard courts.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s absurd,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Fees have long been charged at Howard Park<\/a> because it has clay courts, which are expensive to maintain.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no maintenance on hard courts,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople shouldn\u2019t have to pay to play.\u201d<\/p>\n

Further, he said, it makes no sense to charge different rates at South Olive and Gaines parks.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll of them need to be the same,\u201d he said. \u201cWhy should I pay more to play on courts near my house than I would if I drove to ones farther away? That\u2019s crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n

City officials didn\u2019t explain why the rates will be different, but it is likely because the neighborhoods surrounding Gaines Park are far less affluent than those surrounding South Olive.<\/p>\n

The apparent recognition that the tennis centers are vastly different also raises questions about why one company is being hired to run all three, Williams said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy mama always told me not to put all my eggs into one basket,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

For years, the city has cultivated tennis at South Olive and Howard parks by hiring pros to operate programs there.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gaines Park, which is in a predominantly Black community, hasn\u2019t had a tennis pro for years, relying instead on Williams and other volunteer members of the Gaines Park Tennis Association<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"HowardHoward Park tennis director Mark Jones. (Photo: Courtesy of Nancy Kinnally) <\/p>\n

Williams has watched the drama unfold from afar. He said little makes sense about the city\u2019s decision to oust Jackson and Mark Jones, who has run the center at Howard Park for decades.<\/p>\n

Jackson and Jones were beloved by regulars at the centers. Both took over when the courts were in disrepair. Once they were improved with the proceeds from a $30 million parks bond issue, the city put their contracts out to bid.<\/p>\n

City dropped two bidders<\/p>\n

Initially, the city selected USTA Florida, the Orlando-based arm of the national governing board of tennis, to run the three centers. Those plans were derailed when Jackson raised questions about its failure to divulge its parent company\u2019s involvement in several sexual assault lawsuits.<\/p>\n

In January, the longtime director of USTA Florida was charged<\/a> in North Carolina with multiple child sex crimes.<\/p>\n

By then, the city had disqualified Jackson from bidding on the contract because he spoke out at a City Commission meeting about why he should be allowed to continue to manage the center at South Olive.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The city\u2019s procurement officer ruled that his comments violated a \u201ccone of silence\u201d that prohibits those who bid on city contracts from talking to elected officials in an attempt to curry favor. Jackson immediately filed suit.<\/p>\n

With USTA and Jackson gone, city commissioners in January awarded the contract to Let\u2019s Play Tennis, which also filed a bid protest raising many of the same claims as Jackson.<\/p>\n

Jackson dropped his suit against the city in mid-August, allowing negotiations with Lickle to begin.<\/p>\n

Saying that he doesn\u2019t want to violate the cone of silence, Lickle declined to comment on the status of the negotiations or when he expects to take over the tennis centers at Gaines and Howard parks.<\/p>\n

He could hire Jones to continue to operate the center at Howard Park. Jones said he hadn\u2019t been contacted by either Lickle or the city about his future. \u201cI\u2019m open for negotiations,\u201d he said in a text.<\/p>\n

While Jackson didn\u2019t return a phone call for comment, those close to him said it\u2019s unlikely he would agree to work for Lickle or that an offer would be made.<\/p>\n

Million-dollar deal<\/p>\n

According to the draft contract, Lickle would be paid $920,000 annually to staff and maintain the three facilities. The city would also pay $60,000 a year to maintain the clay courts at Howard Park.<\/p>\n

During the first year, Lickle would receive nearly $100,000 to establish pro shops at each center and purchase supplies. He would get another $80,000 in the first year to pay bonuses to retain employees and cover startup costs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In return, the city would pocket his first $300,000 in revenue from lessons, clinics, court fees and other sales. After reaching that amount, Lickle would retain the lion\u2019s share of the revenue.<\/p>\n

An analysis by artificial intelligence showed that Lickle would have to generate $5.9 million in revenue during the first year and $4.7 million in the second year for the city to break even.<\/p>\n

Jackson\u2019s existing contract with the city is much simpler. He keeps 85% of the revenue he earns and shares the rest with the city.<\/p>\n

While the contract negotiations have been conducted privately, tennis players have publicly railed against the city\u2019s handling of the contract for the three centers.<\/p>\n

Jackson\u2019s supporters turned out in force when he \u2013 and they \u2013 appealed to the commission to let him keep running South Olive.<\/p>\n

Chrisana Blanco, who plays in the women\u2019s league that Jackson runs, said she and others are focusing on the present and trying to forget that Lickle will take over in May.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m happy we have this season and we\u2019re going to make the most of it,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Even though he sued the city, Jackson worked to maintain the success he had built over two decades, Blanco said. He continued to offer programs that attracted players to South Olive. He produced all the financial documents the city requested to show them that South Olive was in good hands.<\/p>\n

\u201cI told him it was like a Bonnie Raitt song,\u201d she said. \u201cYou can\u2019t make them love you.\u201d<\/p>\n