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Since 1973, the Portland Tennis Center has been one of Parks and Rec's crown jewels—so why are city leaders in such a rush to get rid of it?

By Mariah Botkin / Additional Reporting by Sikender Ashraf

Across the Pacific Northwest, tennis participation has grown nearly 11% over the past five years. But for residents of Portland, Oregon—the region’s second-largest city—places to play are disappearing. Portland Athletic Club, which was an affordable option for Portlanders for nearly five decades, as well as the only Black-owned tennis club in the region, closed its doors in February 2025. Eastmoreland Racquet Club, another affordable option, has been shuttered since 2020. And many of Portland’s outdoor public courts are crumbling and neglected—the bureau of Parks & Recreation has a massive maintenance backlog on its hands.

And yet, Portland Tennis Center (PTC)—the city’s only public indoor facility, and a rare affordable option in a city that’s rainy for eight months of the year—appears to be thriving. Located at 324 NE 12th Avenue, beside Benson High School, PTC has four outdoor courts and eight indoor courts (four in its main building and four in the adjacent “bubble”). It isn’t luxurious; the roof leaks and the bubble needs repairs. But none of that keeps tennis lovers away. Day in and day out PTC hums with the steady thwack of racquets and squeak of sneakers, and the strained exhale of hard returns. Every court is claimed Monday through Friday from 6:45 a.m. to 9:45 p.m., and from 6:45 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. on weekends (with long waitlists for mixers and drills).

Indoor courts are $28 per hour at PTC—less than half the price of a private club. Through the Access Discount Program, Portland residents can receive up to 90% off court reservation fees, monthly passes, and fees for mixers, drills, and all activities except private lessons. For as little as $7.40 a month, Portlanders can also be PTC members, and pay no additional fees for court reservations. The Access Discount Program exists because of a series of ballot measures that voters passed in 2020 and 2025. No proof of income is required for residents to participate in the program; participants self-identify their level of financial need by choosing an across-the-board discount of either 25%, 50%, 75%, or 90%. Access Passes of all discount levels must be renewed on an annual basis.

Seniors and youth are central to PTC’s community of users. About 60 seniors regularly fill the courts on weekday mornings and weekends, many relying on the Access Discount to afford play. PTC is also the fall, winter, and spring home of Kids N’ Tennis, an organization founded in 1987 to introduce children of color to the sport. Kids N’ Tennis puts on a free tennis camp for six weeks each summer at Irving Park, as well as a free camp at PTC during winter break. During the rest of the year, Kids N’ Tennis offers weekend programming to local youth for as little as $50 a month.

PTC is welcoming. Staff members know regular players by name. The center supports both recreational and competitive players through league play and drills. It plays an outsized role in expanding tennis access citywide, as there are only 15 publicly accessible indoor courts in all of Portland. This corresponds to just one indoor court for every 26,706 people, well below the tennis industry’s recommended one court for every 10,000 people. Not only is PTC the home of the city’s only public indoor courts, it accounts for over half of the city’s total supply of indoor courts that the general public is able to access.

The other publicly accessible indoor options are Portland Tennis & Education (PT&E) in St. Johns (3 courts, $14 to $20 per session) and Glendoveer Golf & Tennis (4 courts, $11 to $14 per session, or $72 per month, with no discounts available). Private clubs such as the Multnomah Athletic Club, the Irvington Club, and The Racquet Club charge hundreds of dollars each month in membership fees, and exponentially more than that in initiation fees.

It would seem, based on all these facts and figures as well as public enthusiasm, that PTC is a rare success story in the city’s otherwise morbid Parks & Rec picture, which is under enormous strain. But rather than appreciate the critical role that PTC plays in the city’s indoor tennis landscape, PTC administrators and city officials alike are eager to hand off management of the facility to the United States Tennis Association (USTA). The USTA is chomping at the bit to take it over, raising fears that the courts that belong to everyone may soon be accessible only to those who can pay to play.

* * *

Technically speaking, the proposed takeover of Portland’s only indoor public tennis facility would be by the USTA Pacific Northwest (USTA PNW), the regional counterpart of the national organization. USTA PNW has a track record of stepping in when facilities are struggling. When it took over Vancouver Tennis Center (VTC), across the Columbia River, the site was nearing closure amid declining cost recovery; USTA invested more than $1.4 million in upgrades and kept it operational.

Zach Meloche, who has played at both PTC and VTC for more than 20 years, is all for the USTA takeover. “They'll update and modernize it, increase the junior program, and organize more tournaments for both juniors and adults. This would be a huge win for local tennis players,” he said.

The USTA’s programming extends beyond competitive play and includes youth initiatives such as Net Generation and beginner clinics like Tennis 101. Supporters say USTA facilities also offer clearer certification pathways and stronger professional development for coaches.

There is also a practical argument: under USTA management, tennis courts are unlikely to be converted to other uses. As some facilities nationwide add pickleball lines, supporters see the USTA’s involvement as a way to preserve dedicated tennis space—although the organization has incorporated pickleball courts at certain sites.

When it comes to PTC, the comparison to VTC is instructive but not identical. At VTC, peak indoor court time costs $29 for 90 minutes, plus a $10 per player surcharge for non-members, bringing a non-member doubles session to $69. At PTC’s current rate, a comparable session costs about $42—or as little as $4.20 with an Access Pass at a discount rate of 90%.

There is no clear mechanism for continuing Portland’s income-based Access Discount Program under private management. While the City could attempt to incorporate safeguards into a lease agreement, municipal-style income-based pricing did not survive the takeovers at comparable USTA-operated facilities. VTC offers seniors two free weekly court slots, but participation requires a $154 annual membership, and some seniors report six to eight players having to cram onto a single court.

Significantly, when USTA stepped in to rescue Vancouver, VTC was struggling financially and facing possible closure. PTC is not operating at a loss due to lack of demand; it is underfunded within a strained parks system.

***

The City’s real reason for wanting to ditch PTC may be budgetary. Portland Parks & Recreation is under enormous financial pressure. A 2025 city audit found that 86% of park assets are in “poor or very bad” condition, and the parks system faces an estimated $800 million maintenance backlog. Operating PTC costs the city about $2.2 million annually, with an additional $2 million needed for urgent, one-time repairs. Meanwhile, public support for parks and recreation funding is softening. Two separate levies culminated in the Access Discount Program. It was originally created under the 2020 Parks Levy, which passed with 64% voter approval. The 2025 Parks Levy (Measure 26-260) passed with just 54.6% approval. City leaders have prioritized cost savings, making new capital investments difficult. But is PTC really a burden on the city’s finances? It all depends on how you look at it.

Up until 2022, Chris Mulcahy was Portland’s “tennis czar,” overseeing both PTC and the city’s park courts. From his current vantage as a club manager in Melbourne, Australia, Mulcahy pointed to one of PTC’s major underlying structural problems. Even in years when PTC ran a surplus, he explained, the city absorbed the revenue into the general fund rather than reinvesting it in the facility. “If it wasn’t spent within that financial year, I couldn’t put it forward towards anything,” he said.

On December 16, 2025, Portland City Council’s Arts and Economy Committee heard the official proposal from USTA PNW. The City of Portland’s CFO, Jonas Berry, stated that transferring PTC operations to USTA PNW could save city government about $2 million annually. USTA’s COO China Kirk said USTA PNW would invest up to $3 million in Portland’s tennis infrastructure, including $2.3 million for PTC improvements and $100,000 to support ten community “tennis hubs” throughout the city.

Spread across ten hubs, that funding amounts to $10,000 per site. By comparison, USTA’s own Tennis Venue Services program provides up to $50,000 for initial construction of each individual court, plus $8,000 per court for resurfacing. The math makes clear that the proposed hub funding would only cover limited upgrades.

Portland is not included in the USTA Foundation’s national Community Impact Hub initiative, leaving questions about how the proposed local hubs would be funded and structured, and what level of influence the USTA would have over the programming at the hubs. It remains unclear whether the proposed agreement—which is for 30 years of control in exchange for one very symbolic U.S. dollar—is for a lease or a management contract, and how much oversight the city would retain.

At the city council meeting, several players and coaches spoke in favor of the proposal, citing the limited number of courts available for year-round play, and the aging “bubble” that covers four of PTC’s indoor courts.

The former tennis czar, Mulcahy, views the deal as a positive step toward acknowledging the city’s very real maintenance issues—but he has reservations. “If USTA is able to come in with a sizable figure, that would make sense,” he said. “But I think what they’ll end up doing is offering smaller little Band-Aids, then get away with running the center at a profit.”

Councilors said labor transitions, community partnerships, and low-cost access protections are unresolved. They asked USTA staff to return with a formal agreement in Spring 2026.

At least one councilor has reservations. “I do have concerns about how this particular partnership could impact both [Portland] Tennis Center workers and patrons,” Councilor Elana Pirtle-Guiney wrote in response to an inquiry from the Courterly.

She added that negotiations between Parks & Rec and USTA PNW are currently underway and involve a non-disclosure agreement, limiting what councilors can share publicly. Despite the cloud of secrecy surrounding the proposal—an NDA? Really? For a public tennis facility?—the USTA takeover of PTC is far from a foregone conclusion. “This isn't a done deal,” she wrote, “and if this partnership isn’t good for the City, I won't be supporting it.”

Councilor Mitch Green mentioned USTA’s recent national transgender athlete policy, the banning of trans athletes from competing as women, to which Kirk responded that she would “address it offline.”

Parks & Rec prohibits discrimination based on gender identity, and PTC’s programs are currently open to trans athletes. Whether those protections would carry over under USTA management remains unclear.

Despite these unanswered questions, and the fact that no agreement has been approved by the City, the USTA has already created a booking page for Portland Tennis Center on its national platform.

The proposal has received little coverage in local Portland media, leaving many players unaware a decision is approaching. In late February 2026, Portland Monthly ran a sponsored post by USTA PNW, promoting tennis growth in Portland and featuring COO China Kirk—the same official who presented the PTC proposal to city council—but without any mention of the pending transfer.

Racket Business, an industry newsletter that has scrutinized USTA’s aggressive growth strategy, has raised concerns about executive compensation. The CEO of USTA PNW, Matt Warren, earned $340,000 in 2023; the regional organization’s COO, China Kirk, earned $263,000. Racket Business also took issue with governance within USTA PNW, citing whistleblower allegations from 2021.

Evergreen Tennis, a private club in Camas, Washington, said that it has struggled in recent years after USTA PNW expanded its footprint nearby. That includes both taking over VTC and securing a 30-year management agreement at Camas High School, without competitive bidding.

The club’s owner, Clark Vitek, told Racket Business that “[t]he USTA likes to go into publicly owned facilities so they can get the long-term lease for the infrastructure at zero dollars.”

Which raises a question about the proposed takeover of PTC: Can USTA PNW actually afford it? USTA PNW’s 2024 IRS Form 990 reports $8.16 million in revenue and $8.13 million in expenses, leaving a narrow operating margin. PTC’s $2.2 million annual operating cost would represent roughly 27% of the regional organization’s annual revenue. Whether USTA PNW could absorb those costs without changes to pricing or programming remains an open question. It is, in many ways, the central one.

* * *

Off the record, citing fears of retaliation, several PTC staff members expressed concerns that, if the USTA takes over, their salaries will be decreased and their current union protections will be removed.

Several PTC regulars also shared their reservations with the Courterly. One senior predicted that if prices rise to USTA levels, senior participation would drop by roughly half. Some might shift to Glendoveer or attempt to secure time at one of St. Johns’ three courts. Others, particularly those on fixed incomes, might stop playing altogether.

Another PTC regular, who wished to stay anonymous over fear of retribution, put it plainly: “I believe there are management problems within both Portland Parks & Rec in general, as well as [at] the tennis center. But I still think it should be a pillar of our public tennis community. I would rather have something imperfect and affordable that is not subject to USTA politics.”

When Portland voters approved Measure 26-260 in November 2025, they increased property taxes by about $310 per year for the average homeowner. Part of what they got in exchange was a stated commitment to “continue free, discounted recreation programs for families experiencing poverty.” While PTC’s $2.2 million annual operating cost is far from insignificant, it represents just 2.4% of the levy's $91 million yearly revenue that voters approved.

Six weeks after the ballot measure passed in 2025, the City proposed transferring PTC operations to USTA PNW. If the USTA takeover of PTC goes through, levy revenue would remain with the city, but it is very difficult to imagine how the Access Discount Program would continue under private management. The oversight committee created by the measure may ultimately weigh whether outsourcing the management of PTC to the USTA aligns with voter intent.

Yet another PTC regular who wishes to remain anonymous put it more bluntly: “They’re keeping the money and getting rid of the center.”

The stated mission of the USTA is to grow tennis to 35 million players by 2035. PTC’s mission, since its founding in 1973, has been to provide Portlanders with an affordable place to learn and play tennis. For now, at least, the city still holds the keys.

Postscript: On April 20, 2026, Mayor Keith Wilson released his proposed budget for fiscal year 2026–2027. On p. 889 of the 1150-page document, he includes the following item under his “Summary of Budget Decisions”:

Transfer Portland Tennis Center Operations to US Tennis Association

($779,385), -4.0 FTE

Anticipates transfer of tennis programming operations to US Tennis Association PNW. Eliminates seasonal expenses and all full-time employees, along with all external and internal materials and services. Reduces half a year of program cost, anticipating transition by 12/31/26.

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