WOODVILLE – The Woodville ISD Board of Trustees heard a presentation from Austin Coker, the tennis program’s head coach, at the regular monthly board meeting on Monday evening.
Coker put forth several reasons why the Woodville High School campus needs new tennis courts added. He said that there has been an uptick in interest in the Eagle tennis program, and currently there are 30 athletes sharing four courts.
“This causes a lot of problems, practice-wise,” Coker said. “It leads to a lot of kids standing around, waiting their turn.”
Coker said there is some deterioration present with the current four courts, including some cracks in the foundations that are expanding. He also showed some photos of some chips in the foundation of the courts. “We’re having big, gaping holes in the court,” he said, which leads to uneven surfaces, and is a risk for both student tennis athletes and community members who utilize the facilities.
Coker said that the situation, as explained to him, necessitates new courts; that due to the way the current courts were constructed in the 1980s, any repair to them would just be “a band-aid.”
New courts, with five to eight courts instead of four, would also give the district an advantage, Coker said, and allow Woodville to host large tournaments and district-level events, which would reduce travel time and costs, and bring in revenue, as well. There are many tournaments and events that Woodville has had to rent out courts or play elsewhere due to inadequate facilities, Coker said.
“The past four years Central Heights has hosted [district events] and you can’t tell me that playing at home for district to advance to regionals doesn’t play a part in a home-court advantage,” Coker said.
Coker showed a list of projected expenses for the project and asked for the board’s support toward the effort. He showed detailed bids from two different firms – Hellas Construction and Build my Court, with each firm supplying quotes for building four courts and also two courts.
The bid from Build my Court, he said, came in at a much more reasonable estimate than the other firm, as far as what tennis court construction should cost. Hellas quoted a bid of over $1 million for four courts, with lighting and $733K for two courts with lighting, while Build my Court quoted four courts without lighting or spectator seating for $424K, and two courts for $235,691. He added that the costs for building new courts can be offset from a USTA (United States Tennis Association) facility assistance grant, which can cover up to $140K in construction costs. Coker also covered some possible fundraising initiatives that could be utilized, such as seeking donors in local businesses, alumni and community members.
After Coker’s presentation, board president Jimmy Tucker praised Coker’s effectiveness at leading the district’s tennis program and said that he had “a legend” to follow when he became the head tennis coach. That legend, of course, being Sergio Ramos, one of the most honored and winningest tennis coaches in the state.
T.H.R.I.V.E. update given
The board heard another presentation on Monday evening, from a familiar face. Former WISD superintendent Glen Conner was present to give an update on the T.H.R.I.V.E. program, which will use the former Woodville Intermediate campus as an adult education center.
Conner was recently named the director of the program, which is an acronym standing for “Tyler County Hub for Resilience, Innovation and Vision Empowerment.”
The program operates under the non-profit Tyler County Development Foundation, which is under the Tyler County Industrial Corporation.
Conner said he is working to help develop the program and for the past couple of weeks his main responsibility has been finding partners to help bring T.H.R.I.V.E. to fruition. Some of the potential partnerships, Conner said, include Lamar Port Arthur and Lamar Institute of Technology.
Conner also outlined the facility preparation phase, which is currently in progress. This includes any needed renovations to the building. The program launch, Conner said, is projected for next spring, with the hiring of staff and the launch of the initial programs, with a target for classes to begin in the fall of 2026.
Projected course offerings include a CDL training course, as well as courses in HVAC, IT and bookkeeping.
