What the La Grange dispute means for tennis courts

LA GRANGE, IL — The tennis courts next to Gurrie Middle School in La Grange remain closed, but the school district hopes to reopen them, an official said Monday.

Last week, the La Grange Park District Board of Trustees voted to settle a dispute with La Grange School District 105 over the courts. The school board is due to review the deal next week.

The school district owns the three courts, while the park district must use them. That arrangement ended on July 1, when the park board decided to end a 30-year-old agreement with the school district.

Due to the state of the courts, the school said in a notice in July, they would be closed until further notice.

In an interview Monday, Superintendent Brian Ganan said the district doesn’t have a definitive answer on the courts. But he said the district hopes to resurface them.

“We’re really going to try,” he said.

He said the district is out to bid and will find out the project costs.

The school district does not use the tennis courts as part of its program, Ganan said. However, distance runners sometimes use the courts to stretch, but that can be done elsewhere, he said.

Under the regulations, the park and school districts are not allowed to talk each other down on the tennis court issue. And the school district would be required to remove signs suggesting the park district left the courts in poor condition.