Homeowners say the court was damaged by a county water line installed beneath it in 2008; they say it has wear on it that they don't see on the seven other courts in the complex.
The county first approved the bidding process for the repairs back on February 3 (see first story linked below), budgeting as much as $55,000 to completely tear out the court and build a new one in its place.
The initial plan, which was brought before the Commission on October 9, 2014 (see second story linked below), called for only $20,000, a number that grew once the decision was made to rebuild rather than repair it.
The lone bid came from Southeastern Tennis Courts, based out of Lilburn; they've done work on tennis courts for various high schools in Hall and Gwinnett counties as well as North Georgia College and State University (now University of North Georgia) and the University of Georgia.
Their bid did not call for an overhaul, but rather building a new surface on top of the existing damaged one at a cost of $31,500, to be paid in three installments.
"We did look at this product (that would be used to build the new court). It's basically a dense foam," said John Mercer, who spoke on behalf of the neighborhood.
Southeastern Tennis Courts offers a 25 year warranty for this product against cracking, but Mercer says the substance creates a surface most tennis players wouldn't expect.
"(Visiting players) feel as though it puts them at a disadvantage," said Mercer.
By re-opening the bids without a "due date" for the work, more companies should be able to submit their prices. County Purchasing Manager Time Sims indicated that many of the companies that opted not to give a bid cited their workload as the main reason for not doing so.
This will likely create a delay that could last through tennis season, but neighbors are okay with it.
"We are amenable to a several month delay if that's what it takes to get back on track," said Mercer.
Commissioners indicated that they plan to deny the lone bid at Thursday's voting session before soliciting the new bids.
OTHER NOTES
-Commissioners plan to vote Thursday on the plan that would call for abandoning a right-of-way in the Tumbling Circle area, something brought about by Norfolk Southern closing its railroad crossing in that area. We've followed that story from the start, and more details are available in the third linked story below.
-The Commission will also take a look at a proposal from a pizza restaurant in the Clermont city limits that is asking for a parcel of land to be annexed by Hall County. According to Hall County Planning Director Srikanth Yamala, the owner wants to open a sports bar, which he can't do in his current situation because Clermont is a dry city. His property would have to be released by Clermont, then brought before the various boards in Hall County to be zoned.
-The Commission's next meeting was moved from its normal 6:00 p.m. time slot to 10:30 a.m. on Thursday February 25.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2015/2/285558