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Harlem Tennis Center (HTC) FAQ's
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Contents:Where is the HTC located?
Who was the prior leaseholder?
Where is the Harlem Tennis Center (HTC) located? The HTC is located in Manhattan (NY, NY). Access to the HTC is via the side door of the 369th Regiment Armory at 40 West 143rd St. (between Fifth & Lenox avenues). The tennis courts are on what is called the "Drill Shed floor" of the Armory.
I've heard that PAL has plans to take over the Armory and already has the lease. Isn't it a done deal? No, rumors to that effect have been circulating for over a year now, but as of 08/06/01, the DMNA (grantor of the lease at the Armory) has stated that no lease for the upcoming season(s) has yet been signed.
Who was the prior leaseholder?
First there was Nick's Indoor Tennis in the 1950's, followed by Bill's Indoor Tennis (later to become known as Bill's Fifth Avenue Tennis, under the direction of the late Bill Brown and Claude Cargill), which then became the Harlem Tennis Center (HTC). In 1972, the Inter-Community Tennis Association (with Zack Davis as President and Barbara Craddock-Royal as Secretary) started a junior program at the Armory, under the direction of Bill Brown and Bill Jefferson. In 1975, the program was underwritten by Bill's Indoor Tennis and was named Bill's Junior Program. During the Koch administration, all 8 tennis courts were used to house the homeless, but even then, tennis was still played on 4 courts for the children from 4pm to 8pm, after Claude Cargill persuaded the Armory to grant its approval for the junior program to use the space. The junior program was re-named the Harlem Junior Tennis Program (HJTP) at that time, since Claude Cargill and Bill Brown had severed their partnership at the Armory. When mayor David Dinkins took office, he restored the right of the HTC to offer tennis programs to the community. In 1992, the HTC was granted a lease by the state to operate as a commercial entity under the direction of Claude Cargill and Cecil Watkins, allowing the HTC to rent space to the many youth and adult programs that were established there. At that time, the HJTP requested and received a separate lease from the state, to operate as a non-profit organization with its own governing board. The HTC continued to rent out space to the many other non-profit and for-profit tennis programs there, as well as court time to individuals at hourly, monthly, and seasonal rates. Click here for a list of the 14 youth and 18 adult programs operating at the Armory during the 2000-2001 season.
What's in the neighborhood? I've heard of plans to turn the 369th Armory into a multi-use recreational center. Are there any other organizations in the area near the Armory which *already* provide recreational/community services? Yes, within approximately 10 city blocks (10 blocks = 1/2 mile) of the Armory, there are at least a dozen such groups. Within the general area of Central Harlem, there are perhaps 50 or more organizations providing children's and after-school programs alone. Click here for a listing of their names and addresses. Below are brief descriptions of the organizations within approximately 10 city blocks of the Armory.
Click
here
to see a brief description of four of them:
Similarly, the Jackie Robinson Center is both a recreation center , and also has a computer resource center. Both centers (as well as the Pelham Fritz Center somewhat farther to the south, which also has recreation and computer facilities) are run by the NYC Dept. of Parks and Recreation. The Harlem YMCA has additional information on its own web site, including links to descriptions of its various programs, such as programs for: kids (2-12); teens (13-18); as well as for adults and seniors , including free computer classes for seniors. Graham Windham also has several facilities in the vicinity of the HTC, including:
Click on the links below to see brief descriptions of Graham Windham, including Who They Are and More About Them . Right next door to the Graham Windham Day Care Center at 669 Lenox Avenue (between 143rd & 144th streets) is the Frederick Samuel Community Center, which offers an after-school homework and tutorial program for children ages 7-13, from 3pm-6pm, Monday thru Thursday. At other times, it also offers a recreation program, including such activities as: basketball, football, Karate, and cheerleading. The M.L. Wilson Boys & Girls Club of Harlem, located at 425 West 144th Street, is also situated near the Armory. Click here to see their mission statement and a brief description of the services that they provide for the community. There is also the Jackie Robinson Youth Center on 135th Street between Lenox & Seventh Avenues, directly across the street from the Harlem YMCA. The Salvation Army also has a Harlem Community Center at 540 Malcolm X Blvd. (on Lenox Ave. between 137th & 138th streets), offering services for both youth and senior citizens. It is #33 on the Salvation Army's web site map . The Countee Cullen Community Center of the Rheedlen Foundation, located at 242 West 144th Street (between 7th & 8th avenues) serves both children and adults of the community. Rheedlen, original founder of the Harlem Children's Zone, has now taken the name of Harlem Children's Zone, Inc. Click here to learn more about the Harlem Children's Zone. Slightly further away is Riverbank State Park , with both indoor and outdoor facilities. A brief description of Riverbank and of other parks in the vicinity (including the historic Colonel Young Park directly across the street from the HTC) can be found here. In addition, according to a press release published by the Department of Public and Community Relations of the NYC government, dated Dec. 19, 2000, construction of a $7 million new community center at the Polo Grounds was signed off on by officials of the NYC Housing Authority. Construction was scheduled to begin in Feb., 2001. The 21,850-square-foot community center, to be located on West 159th Street, near the Polo Grounds Towers and the Rangel Houses, will house, among other things, a full gymnasium with a regulation-size basketball court, which is to be constructed "so that it can be easily transformed into a multipurpose room with a stage platform for performances and community events." Also planned is construction of an education wing for the center, which will "accommodate computer and audio/video rooms, a photo lab, a game room and an arts and crafts center."
[more details about other community based organizations (CBOs) in the neighborhood will follow, as time and space permits]
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