Brick Awards $655K Contract For Tennis Court Reconstruction

Brick, NJ -- Tucked away in a corner of the municipal complex is the Land That Time Forgot.

An aging chain-link fence surrounds six frequently empty, mostly unused tennis courts. The paint, redone a few times, is faded and blotchy. Cracks as much as 4 inches wide snake through the asphalt playing surface, the result of poor drainage and decades of freezing and thawing.

There have been attempts to patch it, of course. Temporary repairs to make the courts usable. But little else.

The courts -- now an eyesore reminiscent of an inner-city park -- are in such bad shape, Brick Mayor John Ducey said, that Brick Township High School's tennis players cringe at using them.

"It's very embarrassing when they have home matches," Ducey said, because the courts are in such bad shape.

That's about to change, after the Township Council approved the award of a $655,773 contract last week for reconstruction of the courts.

No one knows for sure when the asphalt courts, built in the late 1970s, were resurfaced, if ever. For years, the courts existed in their only little oasis, with a gravel parking lot accessible only from one entrance, which also served as the exit. Tennis was big back then. That was the era of Jimmy Connors and Chris Evert, who were making a name for American players on the world tennis stage competing against players such as Bjorn Borg and Martina Navratilova.

The parking lot was paved in early 2010 as part of the project installing the solar panels at the municipal complex, but the courts themselves, which lack even seats for players, were not addressed.

Ducey said the project has been discusssed for years, going back to when he first joined the Township Council, and the hope and desire of the township was that the Brick Township School District would help pay for the reconstruction, as the courts are heavily used by the high school. Girls tennis players have matches and practices daily in the afternoons in the fall through mid- to late October, and the Dragons' boys team uses the courts in the spring for about 8 weeks.

That is about to change, however, after the Township Council approved awarding a $655,773 contract for Classic Turf Company of Connecticut to reconstruct the tennis courts.

"The previous administration, and our administration, have tried to get the school board to share in the cost," Ducey said. But after years of refusals, he said, it was time to act.

"We made the decision last year and authorized the money," Ducey said. Green Acres funding will be used for the reconstruction.

The project will include a new surface, new fencing, bleachers, lighting, sidewalks and a drainage system, Ducey said.

"The water is the problem," Ducey said, because puddling and accumulation of water and snow on the courts has led to the severe cracking. The drainage is "a large part of the cost of this project."

Classic Turf, the company doing the court reconstruction, will be installing a court through "post-tension concrete." The company says the surface is achieved by installing the concrete over cables; the process prevents cracking of the concrete, according to the company's website. A rubberized playing surface is then installed on top of the concrete and is sealed.

The company gives it a 20-year crack-free guarantee.

A timetable for completion of the work was not immediately available.

A Google Maps satellite view of the tennis courts at the Brick Township municipal complex.