Mecklenburg County has made the decision to extend it's directive another month to keep the lights off at the public tennis courts until the end of February due to Covid concerns.  While we do support measures to keep our community safe, we don't understand why parks (including tennis courts) are open during the day, but not at night. In addition, CMS is opening up their high school sports, like football, which are riskier than tennis.  The county is not being consistent.

Adults who work during the day and children who are in school deserve the same access to outdoor spaces as those that have access during the day. Now, more than ever, our communities need outdoor spaces to exercise in a safe, socially distant manner. Tennis has been proven to be one of the safest sports, and playing at night with lights does not make it more dangerous.  Players are not congregating -- they are playing their matches and going home, keeping everyone safe.

Please don't penalize the working players by refusing to turn on the tennis lights. Many players have said that tennis is the only thing keeping them sane during this tumultuous period of time.  We all should be encouraging outdoor exercise if it can be done safely, and not restricting options.  Please turn back on the tennis lights!