Grand reopening of Lake Tomahawk tennis courts

Black Mountain hosted a grand reopening of the Lake Tomahawk tennis courts on December 4 after completing the first court renovation since the 1980s.

“Because of the scenery here, being close to the water, they had to go in and completely tear off the old grounds,” said Josh Henderson, director of the recreation and parks department.

A handful of residents including the mayor, three council members, various city staff and families attended the court opening on December 4.

Due to the pandemic hampering the project, Henderson said it took three years to put everything in place. He said the total project, including the new fence, cost around $ 120,000.

Henderson said plans to redo the courts had been in place since his arrival in 2018. The original courts had been in use from “the mid to late 1980s.”

The location of the lakeside courts created runoff issues and created surface cracks. In the end, the entire surface had to be raised 8 inches to be away from the water table.

The city partnered with the Whalen Tennis Company of Asheville to bring the project to fruition. Henderson said the Black Mountain Tennis Association was instrumental in redesigning the courts, attending council meetings and pushing for the completion of the project.

“It took a little longer than we would have liked. We had a lot of rain in September and October which delayed us a bit,” said Henderson. “We were about a month late.”