Tennisport Bubble 'Bursts' In LIC

For 33 years, the white bubble covering Tennisport has served as a landmark in the Hunters Point section of Long Island City.

Officials last week confirmed that it's game, set and match for the tennis center, which will close its doors for good on July 31st to make way for a massive housing development at the East River site.

The family that owns the tennis center said they would love to keep it open for another year, but city officials are pressuring them to shut down so construction of the housing complex can get underway.

The tennis center, which boasts 16 red-clay indoor courts and eight outdoor courts, hosted tennis' "bad boy", John McEnroe, along with stars like Robert Redford and Sean Connery.

Built 33-years-ago, on an abandoned dumpsite along the East River by visionary Freddie Botur, Tennisport remains a family business. Botur, 67, continues to work at the center, which is run by his daughter, Andrea.

City officials are planning to build 5,000 units of middle-income housing and a school on the 24-acre site, which the city purchased from the state in 2002.

Officials said workers are slated to begin clearing the land by the end of this year.

Andrea Botur said leaving Tennisport is difficult, since it has established itself as one of the best liked tennis centers in the city.

Botur family members who are preparing to bid a sad farewell to Tennisport are currently scrambling to find jobs for 30 employees and 15 tennis pros who will find themselves out of work when the center closes its doors on July 31st.

—Liz Goff