West Side Tennis Club
Former names | Forest Hills Tennis Stadium |
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Location | One Tennis Place Forest Hills, Queens, NY, U.S. 11375 |
Coordinates | 40°43′11″N 73°50′55″W / 40.7196°N 73.8487°W |
Website | |
www |
The West Side Tennis Club is a private
The club hosted 60 editions of the U.S. National Championships (renamed the
History
The club was founded in 1892 when 13 original members rented land on
The club hosted the International Lawn Tennis Challenge (now known as the
In 1915, the United States Lawn Tennis Association National Championship, later renamed the
Beginning in 1971, the stadium was home to the annual
In 1975, the tournament was switched to
The New York Empire of World TeamTennis announced it would play its home matches, coached by Patrick McEnroe, at the stadium beginning with its inaugural 2016 season.[5] The team relocated to the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center for its second season in 2017.[6]
Forest Hills Stadium
In addition to hosting the main court for tennis championships, the Forest Hills Stadium has been used as a concert venue featuring major artists ranging from
Following the 1978 departure of the Open the stadium fell into such disrepair that by 2011 it was called a "crumbling ruin" and was denied landmark status by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission.[4] The West Side Tennis Club received an offer in 2010 to raze the stadium and replace it with condominiums.[9]
However, in mid-2013, the stadium re-opened as an outdoor concert venue with Mumford & Sons performing the inaugural concert on August 28.[10] Since then the Forest Hills Stadium has held a regular summer concert series featuring Santana, Zac Brown Band, D'Angelo, Van Morrison, Arctic Monkeys, and others.[1] It is also the summer home of The New York Pops.[11]
From 2013 to 2017, an extensive four-year renovation to revitalize the historic venue included several significant upgrades. Starting with patching up concrete exterior walls, old seats were removed and replaced by initially 1,200 new seats in 2014. A permanent stage was installed, designed by Mark Fisher, renowned for his sets for Pink Floyd, U2 and the Rolling Stones. A new concourse redesign expanded it to twice its original size for attendees to relax on a grassy court as well as easier access to food and beverages concessions. In addition to reserved seating in the club and bowl were improved seating options for people with disabilities. And after 70 years the central tennis courts were replaced with a standing room general admission floor to accommodate many thousands more people. And unique VIP party lounges were created from unused spaces discovered beneath the stadium after removal of decades-worth of rubble and debris.[12] Plans announced in 2018 to turn the stadium into a year-round venue as a winter village with an ice skating rink have yet to be realized as of 2022.[13]
The stadium also has a history of use as a filming location. The Alfred Hitchcock film Strangers on a Train (1951) was filmed in part during the 1950 Davis Cup finals at the West Side Tennis Club on August 25–27, 1950. Several scenes in Wes Anderson's The Royal Tenenbaums were filmed in and around the stadium, including the "Windswept Fields" meltdown of Richie Tenenbaum.[14]
Community backlash
Following backlash from residents living nearby the stadium, a curfew of 10:00 p.m. was implemented for all shows.[15] In 2014, shortly after the stadium's re-opening, concerts by Brand New and Modest Mouse, Zac Brown Band and Lil Wayne saw decibel levels above the city's noise code, leading to warnings being issued. A month after meeting with the Environmental Protection Department to discuss strategies for mitigating noise, The Replacements performed at three times over the decibel limit during their finale, and the stadium was fined $3,200.[16] In 2015, the stadium spent $500,000 on noise suppression methods including a concrete fence and stairway covers.[17]
An October 2022 concert featuring Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Japanese Breakfast resulted in 62 noise complaints, the highest number recorded for the stadium.[18] In May 2023, the stadium was sued by the Forest Hills Gardens Corporation for violating the neighborhood's residential zoning regulations. In response, West Side Tennis Club and its booker countersued and a judge provided an injunction allowing for Burns Street to remain open for the over 30 concerts that were scheduled at Forest Hills Stadium that summer.[19] The stadium was sued three times in total for noise complaints in 2023.[20]
References
- ^ a b "History - Forest Hills Stadium". Forest Hills Stadium.
- ^ "Ethel's Tennis Tournament Is a Labor of Love - Vol. 2 No. 9".
- ^ Steinberger, Michael (August 23, 2012). "Queens Was Burning, Too: The Chaotic Spectacle of the 1977 U.S. Open". The New York Times Magazine. pp. MM34. Retrieved September 5, 2012.
- ^ a b Chura, Nate (August 29, 2011). "Ruin in the Forest: A Stadium Once Fit For the US Open Falls Into Disrepair". WNYC. Retrieved January 28, 2013.
- ^ "Mylan World TeamTennis 2016 Season Includes Return to New York City, Expanded Broadcast Coverage". World TeamTennis. February 17, 2016. Archived from the original on June 6, 2017. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
- ^ Schwartz, Peter (March 7, 2017). "Schwartz: New York Empire Ready For Improved Second Season In World Team Tennis". CBS New York.
- ^ "About Forest Hills Stadium". Forest Hills Stadium. New York. Retrieved April 22, 2016.
The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Barbra Streisand, and Simon & Garfunkel all graced the stage at Forest Hills during its heyday in the 1960s and 70s.
- ^ "Forest Hills Music Festival 1967". Festivival. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
- ^ Wotapka, Dawn (August 11, 2010). "U.S. Open Stadium May Go Condo". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved November 20, 2022.
- ^ "Past Shows". Forest Hills Stadium. Retrieved April 13, 2020.
- ^ "The New York Pops Announces New Summer Home at Forest Hills Stadium | the New York Pops". Archived from the original on March 20, 2016. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
- ^ Scileppi, Tammy (June 15, 2017). "Head for the hills: Forest Hills Stadium completes four-year renovation to revitalize historic venue". QNS. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
- ^ Law, Tara (April 16, 2018). "Major Changes Planned at Forest Hills Stadium". Forest Hills Post. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
- ^ "the year 2015: windswept fields".
- ^ Antos, Jason D. (October 1, 2014). "As Concerts Return To Stadium, So Do Noise Complaints - Queens Gazette". Queens Gazette -. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ Baker, Al (September 24, 2014). "As Concerts Return to Forest Hills Stadium, So Do Complaints". The New York Times.
- ^ "Neighbors want Forest Hills Stadium to turn down the volume at concerts". October 24, 2023.
- ^ "These Forest Hills Stadium concerts made residents most angry". November 6, 2023.
- ^ "Forest Hills Stadium owners sued as neighbors complain about noise - CBS New York". www.cbsnews.com. May 20, 2023. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ "Residents sue Forest Hills Stadium over concert series noise complaints". New York Daily News. December 13, 2023. Retrieved December 14, 2023.