“It’s going to take a little while before we can get back,” said Sloane. “I would assume months, and I can’t say specifically how many months. We have to get our utilities back. We have to clean up the facilities. We have to make sure it’s safe for us to come back, in terms of air quality, and the ability to provide services.”
Brereton is also a USTA official, working at many tournaments throughout Southern California. Recently, as Brereton prepared to drive to a junior tournament in Whittier, 27 miles south of Altadena, he realized he lacked the clothing necessary to play his role. Off Brereton went to buy a pair of khaki pants and a blue sweater.
In addition to running the Palisades Tennis Center, Mike Tomas runs public tennis facilities in the relatively nearby Los Angeles neighborhoods of Westwood and Cheviot Hills. Westwood Park, roughly seven miles east of Palisades Tennis Center, has become the new practice spot for the Pali High tennis team. Tomas has many plans to support the devastated Palisades community, including conducting a fundraiser at Cheviot Hills on April 26.
“We want to be givers,” he said. “That’s the spirit of the Palisades.”
And though Tomas is also aware that it will take at least several months for the tennis facility to reopen, he’s committed to making it happen.
“There’s always been a sense of magic in the air when it comes to tennis here,” he says.
“Palisades has to have a tennis center,” said Howard Sands, a former pro whose two sons play tennis at Palisades High. “I cannot imagine this community without it.”
