The Cavalier daily :: Thursday, May 17, 1973 :: University of Virginia Library

All ten of the upper courts
at Memorial Gym have been
scheduled for resurfacing since
this winter with April 14 the
date originally set for
completion. To date, no
action.

Plans for increasing the
number and improving the
surface of the University's
tennis courts have long been a
top priority goal for University
Director of Athletic Programs,
Gene Corrigan. It has been
through his efforts that the
number of courts was
expanded to 19 during the
1971-72 school year.

It was Mr. Corrigan, then,
who engineered the proposed
improvement for the Memorial
Gym courts, and he, as much
as anyone, is disappointed at
their delay in completion. The
fact remains, though, that the
total number of playable tennis
courts has been cut in half for
April and May–the primary
playing time during the year.

With only nine University
courts in playing condition at
present, the competition for
playing space has been so great
that the wait for a court is
almost not worth it. Waits of
two hours for courts are not
uncommon. Hence the need
for speedy completion of the
Memorial Gym project.

The old composition courts
that are being resurfaced were
quite lumpy, and would have
required so much effort to
improve and maintain that
their demise had long been
anticipated. As students went
home for spring break, they
were expecting the resurfacing
to be completed shortly after
their return. Such was not the
case.

Where does the explanation
lie for the long delay? Is any
one person or department at
fault? The answers to these
questions are somewhat
nebulous, and perhaps are still
in the making.

Rain Halts Construction

The first week of April
came and the contracting firm
of A. G. Diller Inc. had its
equipment in place. It was at
this time that April showers
brought May glowers. A week
of constant rain ended all
possibilities of the courts being
finished by April 14. This was
the first step on the road to the
current grumblings emanating
from all corners of the
University.

Eventually the rains gave
way to the more sporting-like
weather of late April and May,
but still no progress was
evident. In fact by this time,
the signs of work, namely
steamrollers and such, had
been removed. Diller, Inc.
explained, we have to move
our equipment to a different
location where we can get a
different job done. Once
moved, it was not so easy to
get it back. We haven't seen
them since.

Interdepartmental Confusion

The toughest problem of
all, though, has been a certain
degree of confusion between
Diller, Inc., Tilly Wright,
Superintendent of Buildings
and Grounds for the Athletic
Department, and Evan J. Male,
University Director of
Facilities and Finance for
Athletics. This delay has
centered around the planned
inclusion of night-time lighting
for all 15 of the Memorial Gym
courts.

While the lighting of all 15
courts represents a great
improvement in University
tennis facilities, it has brought
about some structural
problems. While Mr. Corrigan
assures The Cavalier Daily that
the courts will definitely be
lighted, "I hope the lighting
will be completed by the end
of the summer." Mr. Wright
and Mr. Male can't seem to
agree or how to go about
doing it. The result has been
delay.

Let There Be Light

At first the question was
over the actual placement of
light standards. Once that was
resolved, with light poles
behind each court, and with
poles at mid-court, the
all-important question of
finance came to the fore. Enter
Mr. Male.

Mr. Male was forced to halt
the preferred installation of the
lights concurrently with the
resurfacing of the courts
because the money was not
available at that time. Since
there was some question as to
whether the money would
become available shortly or
not, again Mr. Wright was
forced to halt Diller, Inc.

The Corrigan Forehand

How then do the courts
stand now? Construction is
scheduled to begin Monday
with provisions in the form of
sub-surface plastic conduits
being laid for later electric
wiring. Barring inclement
weather, the new surface
should be ready in three weeks.
If no further complications
arise in funding, the new lights
may be operational by next
fall. One thing for sure though,
Mr. Corrigan, heaving a sigh of
relief, will be one of the first
players out to test the new
courts.