Portions of the tennis courts at LSU’s Recreational Center look more like a disaster area than a playing surface.
Last year, a post-tension cable malfunction ripped apart a large section of courts one through three, said Michael Giles, the interim director of recreation sports.
Currently, only three of the center’s nine tennis courts are operational. The Rec closed courts seven through nine as a safety precaution.
Giles said the courts have not yet been fixed because the University and the original construction company have not been able to come to a decision regarding the repairs.
“If this was just normal wear and tear, we would fix it,” he said. “Part of the process is determining exactly where the fault lies. We’re trying to work with the original construction company.”
Emmett David, Facility Development Director, said the LSU System, the Recreational Sports Center and Facility Services are working together to do what they can to solve the problem.
“It is our intention to have repairs or possible removal of the courts in the next 60 days,” David said. “The University is taking measures to have these courts fixed.”
David said it was unclear when the structural failure occurred.
He explained that concrete poured using the post-tension slab method is designed to work in compression. He said environmental factors, such as drastic temperature changes, cause the slab to contract and expand. When a failure occurs, the tension from the cables eventually “pops” the concrete at the corners.
According to the United States Tennis Courts and Track Builders Association Web site, “the preferred method of concrete court construction is the post-tensioned concrete slab. This system allows for a much larger single monolithic pour, eliminates the need for expansion joints and minimizes reflective and surface cracking.”
“It is under litigation,” David said. “We tried to the best of our ability to stay out of legal action.”
Giles said he hopes the courts will be functional soon. He said the three open courts were reserved until 9 p.m. Thursday night because so few courts are open and many University students want to play tennis as the weather improves.
“We are currently working with the LSU system to repair the courts,” he said. “I’m very hopeful that we can get this done before summer.”