Reader Comments on Roosevelt Island Racquet Club Proposed Expansion and Extension of License Agreement - Sounds Fishy Says One Reader

The second item on the Agenda for RIOC board of Directors meeting scheduled for Thursday October 18 at 4;30 PM is:

Authorization to Enter into the Third Modification Agreement with the Roosevelt Island Racquet Club Associates (Board Action Required)

Below are excerpts of some comments received in response to this post questioning the need and the advisability of RIOC entering into any further licensing obligations with the current occupants of the Roosevelt Island Raquet Club at this time.

Almost three years ago, we-parents, started a swimming club on the island. With a help of the Westview management, we were able to organize
Learn To Swim Program for children...
In the last Wire issue we read Mr. Shane's comment about possibility of giving Sportspark to the Racquet Club to expand their program for Manhattan residents (who are in a need for more tennis courts)... The news was so upsetting , because we saw the Sportspark facility as a RI. Marlins home. Even we used it only 4 times a week, we revived that pool with our presence, and now we feel endangered. As a parent , who went to the Racquet Club to ask about prices for the Junior Program, and was first shocked learning how much it would cost,and then informed that there are NO ANY DISCOUNTS for the RI children, I'm fearing that if they
take over Sportspark, swimming will be out of the reach for many RI kids and all the other programs will be purely designed for people with very deep pockets.

We just feel so powerless......we even don't know which door to knock on.

Another reader:

There is nothing free except early morning classes for the RI kids (past year was Sat/ Sun 6:00AM ??!!!). I wanted to sign up my child for the Junior program (afternoons-more appropriate hours). The price is outragiuos and THERE IS NO ANY DISCOUNT for the RI children. Simple as it is.

Also, if I remember correctly , the classes are offered only to IS/217 - Middle School students through the school list. About (5) offered courts .... I don't believe that this info is correct.

A third reader sends in this 1991 article from the NY Times:

Hoping to capitalize on a growing interest in tennis and improved transportation to Roosevelt Island, developers have broken ground for the Roosevelt Island Racquet Club, with 11 dome-covered courts and a 7,000-square-foot clubhouse. The club is scheduled to open in October on a two-acre site on the New York State-owned island directly under the Queensboro Bridge.
...Mr. Hartman said lease payments to the state will be set at a minimum of $100,000 a year and should increase after five years to over $400,000; the club will then pay a percentage of its revenues to the state. Membership fees have been set at $600 a year for individuals, plus a $500 initiation fee, and members will pay $40 an hour during prime time, or $30 for off peak hours, for use of the courts.

As this reader points out:

In '91 rent should be $100.000, five years later over $400.000, and 16 years later it should be more, much more, than over $250.000
Something is fishy...

I don't know if anything is "fishy" but I do think further investigation and inquiry is the least that the RIOC Board could do prior to voting on the license modification agreement for the Tennis club. As members of the RIOC Board they do have certain fiduciary obligations and responsibilities as well as adhering to the Public Authorities Act. Based upon the webcast of the RIOC Board's Real Estate committee meeting on this topic, the Board members present did not appear to ask any relevant questions regarding the advisability of expanding the Tennis Center, whether it is a good deal for Roosevelt Island and if there was potential for alternative recreational, cultural or other public uses. It certainly is a good deal for the Tennis Club. Watch the webcast or listen to it and decide for yourself.

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