Noyes tennis courts resurfacing project underway

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) -- Tennis players will soon have a fresh playing surface to enjoy at the Noyes Sports Complex courts.

Parks Director Jeff Atkins, with St. Joseph's Parks and Recreation department, said this project will take roughly three to four weeks to finish.

"It's a good rule of thumb, every five to seven years at the very best, you have to go in and repair small cracks in courts and resurface them," Atkins said. "If you don't, they will continue to disintegrate and then you've got bigger and more expensive problems."

On top of resurfacing, new led lights will go up around the tennis and horseshoe courts. These will take longer to finish than the resurfacing project but the courts will be open while the lights are being worked on.

"We are going to reuse the posts on the tennis courts where they are so we won't have to do any new trenching," Atkins said. "They'll run new wiring under the existing card or through the existing conduits but we don't have to dig anything up."

The new lighting will be cleaner and brighter, as well as cheaper. He said the new lighting burns a lot cheaper and will save money in the long haul.

The project is being funded by the parks tax fund and a $23,900 contribution from the St. Joseph School District.

When the courts are relined, no pickle ball lines will be added because of United States Tennis Association tournaments being played at the complex.

"We're lucky enough to get to host USTA tournaments here, and part of their regulations are their courts have to be tennis court(s) only," Atkins said. "You can't have any other type of markings on the courts."