As YMCA explores plans for Patterson St. facility, tennis players vent frustrations 

Court space for indoor tennis has long been at a premium in Eugene, with the four Eugene Family YMCA courts on Patterson Street seeing heavy use by tennis and pickleball enthusiasts. 

Now, as the Y seeks to build additional facilities on Patterson Street, tennis and pickleball players feel they’re getting frozen out of one of the only indoor places they have to play.  

In December 2023, the Y opened a new building on East 24th Avenue, a couple of blocks south of the old building. The old building was torn down, leaving only a large vacant lot — and the four-court tennis center. 

Demand for memberships at the “new” Y quickly outpaced projections. In March, officials said there were more than 18,500 members and the organization was planning two new facilities — a new Y in North Eugene and a campus expansion of the current Y on Patterson Street, the original location. 

Tennis and pickleball players were hoping the Y might build more courts on Patterson Street. 

That is not going to happen, the Y said in an email to the tennis community Wednesday, Sept. 23.  

“We will not be building additional courts,” the email read. “We need to complete the vision of a community hub on the Patterson property with spaces that can host a diversity of programming.” 

In the email, Y officials explained recent decisions by its board of directors as it plans to develop the Patterson Street campus. 

At a Sept. 14 meeting, according to the email, the board directed “that the Y’s facilities and capital assets should not be restricted for the sole, exclusive, or primary use of any particular activity, event, sport or program in an everlasting or enduring way — highlighting the vision that the Y’s facilities and capital assets should be utilized to maximize impact in addressing core community needs and serving as many individuals as possible in ways that support the Y’s community-wide mission.” 

The board also authorized its “Capital Assessment Task Force, comprised of board members and senior leaders, to explore design options for both the Patterson Campus and the Don Stathos Campus (on 24th Avenue) that advance the community hub vision, at several levels of investment, each with an analysis of the community and financial return. Nothing has been designed, budgeted, or approved.” 

In a phone call with Lookout Eugene-Springfield, Brian Steffen, CEO of the Y, said it is “constantly looking to assess community needs and broaden community impact.” 

Steffen said tennis and pickleball meet community needs. There are 753 individuals who have a tennis or pickleball membership (an additional fee on top of a Y membership). The organization does not distinguish between the two groups. 

“We know that for populations of people, that’s how they build relationships and friendships and stay healthy. So there was nothing in the board motion to say get rid of any of those things,” he said. 

Steffen, however, anticipates a reduction in time available for private lessons and court reservations. The email suggested more time would go to group lessons, mixers and introduction-to-play sessions, which could increase the number of people playing tennis at the Y. 

An organized group of players has been trying to preserve the status quo at the four courts with a lengthy letter to the board, an infographic and an Instagram group. Reaction to the Y’s email was swift.  

Jennifer Snelling, who has enjoyed tennis at the Y and helped organize the tennis members’ response to the Y, provided a statement via email to Lookout: 

“The Y has spent months telling this community they were listening. Today’s email tells us what they were actually doing — building a legal and rhetorical framework to dismantle a program while claiming to preserve it. This is not transparency. It is management by attrition.”

Her email added, “They don’t have to close the tennis center. They just have to starve it until it dies on its own. A tennis program cannot thrive without court time, instruction, and the loyal members who have sustained this Y for decades.” 

Steffen said the Y is currently considering an “air-nasium” for the vacant lot at the Patterson Street campus — a large outdoor space with a covering to keep visitors out of the rain and sun. 

“You could have basketball or volleyball, some people even put pickleball lines on them,” Steffen said. “Or summer camps, or a festival, or different activities under these large outdoor coverings.” 

Responses to community surveys showed that Y members were seeking places that could support functional training and social spaces for families to gather and play.

“We’re trying to both address the two biggest community areas of interest without having to go into interior spaces that already have courts on them,” he said. 

Steffen said the Y hopes to finalize a design for the Patterson campus by the end of the year and begin a fundraising campaign in early 2027.