March 2022 - Parks & Recreation - 15

Lisa and Douglas Goldman Tennis Center
A tennis complex in Golden Gate Park reaffirms a commitment to equity,
youth development and democratizing the sport
By Marc L'Italien, FAIA, DBIA, LEED AP
I
n the heart of one of the West Coast's great urban parks sits a revitalized
tennis complex that is capturing the attention of tennis players,
pickleball enthusiasts, San Francisco youth and other community
members alike. The Lisa and Douglas Goldman Tennis Center (GTC)
meets the distinct programming needs of its diverse users who rely on the
complex for everything from professional tournaments to casual matches,
as well as youth learning programs, tennis camps, pickleball clinics, community
fundraising events, birthday parties and more.
The GTC - designed by EHDD
with early design input from
Hammel, Green and Abrahamson
- is integrated seamlessly within the
physical landscape and programmatic
rhythm of San Francisco's iconic
Golden Gate Park. The intentionally
flexible complex was designed to
support year-round youth and adult
programming, as well as a variety of
professional and community uses, all
of which now activate the center on a
daily basis.
Programmatic upgrades to the
complex included
dramatically
increasing play time by installing
new court lighting and offering
additional services through spaces,
such as the new comprehensive
tennis pro shop.
" The real magic of the GTC, in
terms of both its design and programming,
is its unique ability to
reach and properly serve a wide
range of our San Francisco community
- it's both a neighborhood
center and a destination complex,
and that's a huge credit to the teams
who worked to bring it to life, " says
Phil Ginsburg, general manager of
the San Francisco Recreation and
Parks Department.
A strong example as to how the
GTC distinctly caters to the populations
it serves can be found in the
space designed for San Francisco
Recreation and Parks' Tennis and
Learning Center (TLC) nonprofit -
an out-of-school time program that
promotes academic achievement,
health and wellness, and socialemotional
development
through
tennis. Operated out of GTC's Koret
Teaching and Learning Center,
this portion of the GTC is an integral
component of the center's
clubhouse, complete with its own
entrance to solidify a sense of place
and ownership for students. TLC
serves elementary school children in
four of San Francisco's most highneed
communities. The new space at
GTC enabled TLC to launch a new
middle school program, providing
the capacity to increase the number
of students who can be served by
the organization's programming by
close to 60 percent.
" As a result of the revitalization,
the GTC's profile has been significantly
elevated within the community,
drawing in thousands of new
players, " says Martha Ehrenfeld,
co-chair of Tennis Coalition SF, an
integral component of the publicprivate
partnership
that brought
Community members play a match on
the Lisa and Douglas Goldman Tennis
Center's sunken stadium-style court, the
most visible court within the complex.
the GTC to fruition.
The EHDD and HGA design
teams, in close partnership with
the city of San Francisco and local
community members, have reimagined
and reconfigured the GTC
so that all its distinct populations
can be satisfied, while creating a
true cultural hub that allows future
change and accommodations as
these groups grow and evolve. The
complex has brought new life and
energy to Golden Gate Park, giving
the entire community a new reason
to explore all that it has to offer.
Marc L'Italien, FAIA, DBIA, LEED AP, is Design Principal and
Practice Leader at HGA (mlitalien@hga.com).
PARK S ANDRECRE AT ION . OR G | MARCH 2 0 22 | Parks & Recreation
15
PHOTO COURTESY OF SOPHIE LEOPOLD
March 2022 - Parks & Recreation

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