It isn’t going to be demolished, at least for now. But the West Side Tennis Club in Forest Hills, NY has no idea what will happen to its historic stadium that was the centerpiece of the US Open until 1977. The club owners proposed selling the stadium to a real estate developer but failed to get the necessary two-thirds approval from the membership, but the future of the stadium remains in limbo as it is estimated that it would cost a prohibitive $12 million to restore the facility, which has not been fully used for 20 years.
The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission is pondering whether the stadium deserves protection, and the club has approached the New York Philharmonic to see if it would like to use the stadium as its summer base. Another possibility is for it to become a tennis academy with accommodation. Some would even like to see it used for a pre-US Open exhibition event, similar to the one staged at the previous home of the Australian Open at Kooyong.
Topics: Accommodation, Australian Open, Centerpiece, Exhibition Event, Forest Hills Ny, Forest Hills Stadium, Landmarks Preservation Commission, Limbo, New York City, New York City Landmarks, New York Philharmonic, Open Exhibition, Real Estate Developer, Tact, Tennis Academy, Two Thirds, West Side Tennis Club