Ten resurfaced tennis courts in the Bronx's Crotona Park are drawing players back under the lights, months after a three-week renovation transformed the borough's only public courts equipped for night play. Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani visited the courts recently to check on how they were holding up, and posted about the progress on social media on Monday.
According to Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani
, the city refurbished the ten courts last month and thanked New York Junior Tennis & Learning, the USTA Foundation and Yonex for helping deliver the upgrade. The courts, which sit in a Bronx park, are the only public tennis courts in the borough with lighting for evening matches, a distinction that makes them a rare after-dark recreation option for residents. The renovation itself was completed in three weeks and supported in part by a $500,000 grant awarded jointly by the USTA Foundation and Yonex through NYC Parks' Adopt-a-Park program, according to
NYC.gov
.
A Grant Built for Speed and Scale
The project used specialized patching and sports coating to bring the courts back into playable shape, the city's announcement notes. A portion of the grant also supports youth coaching, mentorship, and academic support. Yonex is a tennis equipment sponsor.
More Than a Neighborhood Amenity
The Crotona Park courts carry weight well beyond casual play. They serve as the host site for the annual Mayor Dinkins Cup, described by the city as the largest free junior interscholastic tennis competition in the country, drawing more than 800 young New Yorkers each year. The competition is named for former Mayor David Dinkins. Just steps away sits the Cary Leeds Center for Tennis & Learning, a $26.5 million facility that opened in June 2015 through a partnership between NYJTL and NYC Parks, according to NYJTL. The center has 12 courts and educational space, and provides 6,000 hours of free court time annually.
The connection between the neighborhood courts and elite tennis extended into this month's Grand Slam. During the 2026 US Open, NYJTL contributed 15 ball crew members to the tournament and hosted the official Junior U.S. Open qualifier at the Cary Leeds Center from September 1 through 5, as reported by Amsterdam News. That qualifier played out steps from the newly resurfaced public courts, linking a Bronx park directly to one of tennis's biggest international stages.
Filling a Documented Recreation Gap
The upgrade also lands in a borough with well-documented shortages of athletic space. A February 2026 report from the Center for an Urban Future found that Bronx Community District 6, which includes Belmont, West Farms, Bathgate, and East Tremont, contains only 48 athletic facilities and lacks sufficient courts for tennis, pickleball, and volleyball, as Hoodline previously reported. Crotona Park's lighted courts offer an after-dark tennis option.
Crotona Park's ten resurfaced courts give Bronx families and young athletes an after-dark option.
