COSTA MESA : Council Finalizes Tennis Club Contract

After months of negotiations, the City Council this week finalized an agreement with Michael Rehtorik to run the Costa Mesa Tennis Club at Charles TeWinkle Park.

In an unanimous vote, the council approved the five-year contract with an option for an additional five years with Rehtorik, who has been running the courts and concession business since 1987.

The contract, hailed by city officials, could deposit more than $12,000 each year into city coffers. Under the terms of the agreement, Rehtorik agreed to pay the city $1,000 a month in rent, about $400 more than his previous contract. He also agreed to pump more than $15,000 into an extensive capital improvement plan to upgrade the 12 public tennis courts.

“We are very comfortable that this agreement will serve us well during the next five years,� City Atty. Thomas Kathe told the council.

Several months ago, city officials decided to get competing bids because Rehtorik’s original contract expired.

“Based on the current market, the council wanted to see what was out there,� Recreation Supt. Chuck Carr said.

After dozens of supporters came out to praise Rehtorik’s operation of the courts, the council decided to renegotiate his contract. This action came despite a recommendation by city officials to give the contract to Recreational Management Services, which had offered the city $3,000 more than Rehtorik.

Since that time, city officials have spent the last month negotiating the current agreement which is on par with what Recreational Management Services had originally offered.

The Costa Mesa Tennis Club has been in operation since the late 1960s. Besides public tennis, the club also offers tennis classes and tournaments for residents of all ages.

According to city estimates, more than 24,000 people used the tennis club last year.