Full season 2011 NYC Dept. Of Parks' tennis permits for adults 18-61 will rise to the astronomical amount of $200 for the full-season. That number is up 100% from last year’s fee of $100. Permits for seniors 62 and over remain $20 and permits for juniors below 18 remain $10. Single-play and reservation tickets will now be $15.

That means that a couple playing tennis and under the age of 62 years will have to pay $400 to play tennis on NYC tennis courts!

Another factor to consider is that the tennis courts in Juniper Valley Park are in total disarray, with cracks, puddles and broken concrete. These deplorable conditions put tennis players, who are expected to pay $200 for a season permit, in grave physical danger because you cannot play tennis safely with broken concrete and water all over the courts.

The absurdity of this number becomes compounded when you realize that the City of New York has recently allocated some $750,000 to rehabilitate the bocci courts and $350,000 for the handball courts in Juniper Valley Park!
Do the math, that's $1.1 million of taxpayer moneys for NYC residents who play bocci and handball and have no additional permits or fees to pay!
It is unfair to victimize tennis players under the age of 62 with 100% fee increases, and expect them to play their game on dangerously broken tennis courts. To justify any increase in fees the tennis courts in Juniper Valley Park must be repaired so tennis players can enjoy their game on courts that are safe and in top condition. They should have comparably rehabilitated play areas no different from handball or bocci players. To expect less is discriminatory and a reckless use of our tax dollars.

It makes no sense to spend $1.1 million for rehabilitation of handball and bocci courts in the face of deplorable conditions on the nearby tennis courts in Juniper Valley Park. It speaks to the lack of careful oversight on the use of taxpayer dollars.