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Students, players and USTA urge board to prioritize indoor tennis facility; USTA offers grant and technical support
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Summary
Multiple public commenters, including the USTA managing director and students, urged the board to make indoor tennis courts a near‑term priority; the USTA offered grant and planning support and trustees agreed to consider the project in facilities prioritization.
Public comment at the meeting featured multiple speakers urging the board to prioritize an indoor, community‑accessible tennis facility.
Joe Manning (speaker 20), representing the Teton County Community Tennis Association, asked trustees to place a covered courts project high on the district's priority list and to issue a letter of support so the project can begin fundraising and planning. "I am Joe Manning, and I'm speaking on behalf of the Teton County Community Tennis Association," he said, and described a community plan to fund and manage the facility in cooperation with the district.
A student athlete (speaker 21) described the competitive disadvantage caused by Jackson's long winters and told the board year‑round practice is critical to college recruiting. "By investing in covered courts or a seasonal bubble for our schools facilities, we'd be doing more than just building a structure," the student said, emphasizing equity and community access.
Patrick Burriault (speaker 23), managing director at the USTA's national office, told trustees the USTA is prepared to provide grants, fundraising help and technical assistance for construction and ongoing operations if the board signals support. Burriault said local youth tennis participation rates and interest justify a multi‑court indoor facility and framed USTA support as both financial and programmatic.
Board response: Trustees thanked speakers and placed the project on the facilities prioritization list for further discussion. Separately, the board tabled a proposed scoreboard donation agreement until the next meeting so trustees could review the full contract language and donor terms.
What happens next: staff will include the indoor tennis proposal in facilities planning and consider a letter of support and next steps for partnership and fundraising; the district's facilities prioritization conversation will appear on an upcoming meeting agenda.
