Two tennis courts to be added to Township Park for Fitch teams, public
By ROBERT CONNELLY
AUSTINTOWN
Austintown schools athletic director Rob Conklin recalls that expanding the tennis courts at the township park began with a simple conversation.
At a cross country meet in the fall at the Austintown Township Park, he mentioned to township parks supervisor Todd Shaffer that the school’s tennis teams should use the courts at the park.
After the township board of trustees and board of education met jointly in public for the first time Wednesday, the decision was made to proceed with an expansion of the tennis courts at the township park.
The board of education authorized Mal Culp, supervisor of the schools’ facilities and operations, to seek bids to add two tennis courts to the four existing courts at the park. Those two courts would be added where there are now two basketball courts.
Both bodies endorsed the option with an estimated cost of about $120,000.
Shaffer said this will benefit not only “the student-athletes and children, this will also benefit the public of Austintown. ... At any time, all of our courts are taken.”
Though this is happening at the park, the four tennis courts on the campus of the Austintown schools will be taken out for more handicapped parking and a new scoreboard. The board of education unanimously approved spending up to $150,000 for the new scoreboard, which will be able to show instant replays of the game, to the Falcon Forward Committee that will be paid back over a five-year period.
Culp said that in his five years with the district, the campus courts have been an issue.
Conklin concurred: “When I arrived eight years ago, they were in pretty sad shape.”
Both were excited about the work between the township trustees and board of education.
Conklin noted that having six courts available once the project is complete will allow teams to have three singles matches played at the same time.
Conklin and Culp hope to have the project done by the time the girls’ tennis season begins in the fall.
“I think it’s a great step forward for our tennis programs and our relationships among the two governing bodies,” Conklin noted. “The addition of two more courts will satisfy both the needs of the community members who play tennis and suit our needs to a tee.”
The board of education also approved the Austintown Fireworks Committee to shoot fireworks from the parking lot of the old middle school, 6000 Mahoning Ave., for this year’s Independence Day festivities July 4.