Courtesy: Paul Werner Architects/City of Lawrence

UPDATES: I have several updates on the project to share now that I’ve heard back from both the architect and a spokesman from KU Athletics. Here’s a look:
Jim Marchiony, an associate athletic director for KU, said the new facility will greatly improve the ability of the KU women’s tennis team to host events. Currently, the existing facility has only five indoor courts, and spectators often can’t see the play that is happening on all courts.

“This will be a huge step up for our tennis facilities,” Marchiony said.

The new facility will have spectator seating for about 500 people, architect Paul Werner said via email.

Marchiony confirmed that an entity led by Lawrence businessman Thomas Fritzel will own the facility and lease it back to KU. Marchiony also said that the public will be able to purchase memberships and pay to reserve court time at the facility, much like how a KU entity operates the Jayhawk Tennis Center in West Lawrence.

“We are very familiar with the work that the Fritzels do, and we have no doubt that this will be one of the nicer tennis facilities in the region,” Marchiony said.

Werner said the new facility will have a special members lounge and locker rooms.

Marchiony said the athletic department is in discussions on what to do with the current Jayhawk Tennis Center once it is no longer needed for the KU tennis team. He said no decisions have been reached on that matter.

Issues of tax breaks or other incentives also appear to be moot, Werner indicated in his email. He said no incentives are being requested for the project.

Rock Chalk Park is set to grow. Plans have been filed at City Hall for a new indoor/outdoor tennis facility for Kansas University.

Lawrence-based Paul Werner Architects has filed plans for a nearly 67,000 square-foot facility that would have six indoor courts plus an elevated seating area for spectators. In addition, the facility would have six outdoor courts. All of this is in addition to the eight outdoor tennis courts that already exist at Rock Chalk Park and are owned by the city. When it is all said and done, that would be 20 tennis courts at Rock Chalk Park, which I assume would set the area up to host some significant tennis events.

The primary purpose of the facility, though, would be to serve the KU Women’s Tennis team. KU currently has an indoor facility — called the Jayhawk Tennis Center — at 5200 Clinton Parkway in West Lawrence. I’m not sure what the future is for that facility, which KU Athletics bought for $3.1 million in 2010. My knowledge of the Lawrence tennis scene is somewhat limited. (The game scares me. The last time I threw around the word “love” so much, I had to buy a really expensive ring.) But my understanding is this proposed facility would be significantly larger than what exists at the Jayhawk Tennis Center. I’ve seen information that suggests the existing center has only three to four indoor courts.

I also believe that the Jayhawk Tennis Center has been open for the public to buy memberships or pay to reserve court time. I haven’t heard whether that will continue at the new Rock Chalk Park facility. I’ve reached out to architect Paul Werner for details, and I’ll also reach out to KU Athletics. I’ll let you know if I get any additional information.

As for the location of the center, it will be on vacant ground that is just south of the soccer field and just a bit southeast of the track and field stadium. The facility is proposing to make use of existing parking lots at Rock Chalk park. The plans do not call for any new parking to be built as part of the center.

I’m also still seeking information on who will own the new facility. The softball, soccer and track and field facilities at Rock Chalk Park were built primarily to serve KU Athletics. But the facilities are owned by an entity led by Lawrence businessman Thomas Fritzel, while the land is owned by an entity controlled by the Kansas University Endowment Association. The land for the tennis facility is owned by that same entity, but the plans filed with the city do not make clear whether KU will own the tennis facility or whether the Fritzel entity or some other private group will own the facility.

To be clear though, this isn’t a city project. I know this development can be a little bit like a 1970s style tennis outfit — a little tough to comprehend. But it is important to remember that the city paid for its $10.5 million recreation center but KU and the Fritzel entity paid for the construction of the softball, soccer and track and field facilities. The city paid for about $12.5 million worth of parking lots, roads and other infrastructure shared by the city recreation center and the other facilities. This new tennis facility would use that existing shared infrastructure.

So, don’t look for city commissioners to be asked to provide any money for this project. It will be interesting to see whether commissioners, though, will be asked to provide a tax abatement for the facility. KU Athletics facilities automatically receive a property tax abatement from the state — when the facilities are owned by KU. But at Rock Chalk Park, the state did not grant that automatic abatement because the facilities are owned by a private entity, and the Fritzel group has some rights to use the facilities for private uses.

So, the previous City Commission granted a 100 percent property tax abatement for all the facilities through the industrial revenue bond process. The past City Commision viewed it more as a technicality because it believed that KU Athletics really is the de facto owner of the facilities. Perhaps the new City Commission — which was elected on a wave of voter concern about how the city handled Rock Chalk Park — will view it the same way. The details of the project probably will need to become clearer before that can be figured out.

The property for the tennis center already is properly zoned for the project. But the project must receive a special use permit from the city before it can proceed. That means the proposal will get a hearing before both the Planning Commission and the City Commission in the next couple of months.

• The proposed tennis facility gives us a good opportunity to remember what else may be built at Rock Chalk Park in the future.

The tennis facility was included in the original plans for Rock Chalk Park but was labeled as a future phase. Also included in that category of future projects:

• An indoor arena with “3,000 seats for sporting events and an additional 800 seats for concerts.”

• A 4,000-seat amphitheater.

• A lacrosse field.

I’ve heard no discussion about whether those projects are likely to come forward in the future or are more longer term dreams at this point. But the arena and amphitheater components serve as a good reminder that Rock Chalk Park may become more than just a place for KU to host its athletic events. There’s potential for it to become a regional events facility that goes beyond sports. It is interesting to think about the potential there. Lawrence, for example, is a big music town. With the proper facilities at Rock Chalk Park, could it attract a consistent flow of concerts that are smaller than a Sprint Center event but larger than a Liberty Hall concert, for example?

For the near future, though, I suspect sports will be the big traffic driver at Rock Chalk Park. I have heard good things about NCAA officials touring the facilities out there. The NCAA already has chosen Rock Chalk Park to host the NCAA Division I West Regional Track and Field competition in 2016. That event is set for May 26-28, and is expected to be a major driver for visitor spending. (The Division I Midwest Cross Country Regional for this year also is coming to the Lawrence area. Rim Rock Farms in Jefferson County will host it on Nov. 15.) Perhaps there will be other announcements about significant NCAA events being hosted at Rock Chalk Park as well. It would be a surprise if there aren’t. The track and field stadium was built to be world class, and its location in the central U.S. was thought to be a selling point for hosting regional or national events.

In other news and notes from around town:

• Speaking of announcements, we are keeping our ears open for one regarding a new business at Lawrence VenturePark, the industrial park in eastern Lawrence on the site of the former Farmland fertilizer plant. Still nothing to report in that arena, although I believe discussions are still underway with two strong prospects. But the city is busy trying to land a project of a different type out there too: a butterfly garden.

City officials are applying for a $37,000 grant to convert about six acres of property at VenturePark into special habitat for the monarch butterfly. Think of native grasses, milkweed plants and other flowering plants that are known to attract monarchs. The site would be near the new Westar Energy substation at VenturePark.

In addition, the city hopes to use some of the grant money for about 3.5 acres of prairie improvements at the Prairie Park Nature Center and for half-acre butterfly gardens at Burcham Park and near the new Sandra J. Shaw park, which is just west of Burcham Park on the site of the former VFW property.

City officials should know in the next few months whether they’ve won the $37,000 grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Monarch Butterfly Conservation Fund.