University City

Racquet Club

Dear UCRC Tennis Community,

We are pleased to announce several changes we've been working on the past couple months as we guide our club forward. Since our last message to all of you a month ago, we have followed through with the restructuring of the club.

We have a new Director of Tennis! We are thrilled to have contracted with Aurelie Udall and her company, All Court Tennis Academy. Aurelie will be responsible for offering a larger amount of instructional opportunities for all levels, for ages 2 to 92, while generating revenue for the club to help cover club expenses and begin to build a reserve fund for future maintenance costs.

We have also hired Rick Beltran as our Club Manager and hired multiple staff to serve as Court Monitors.

We're also undertaking quite a few renovations to the clubhouse and a move from Racquet Desk to Court Reserve, which will serve as our court scheduler as well as a point-of-sale system.

Clinics and lessons will resume June 21st; read more in this newsletter.

A few notes about your Board of Directors; we have experienced several changes recently on the board. We thank those who served and welcome our new board members:

• Helen Green, who served the board in various roles over many years, including most recently as Secretary, stepped down in May.
• Joe Barbarie, who served as Treasurer the past two years, stepped down in May.
• Kelly Jernigan, who served as President since January 2022 and helped guide us through tumultuous times, stepped down in June.
• David Livingston joined as Secretary and Eric Johanson joined as a member-at-large; both have contributed immediately.
• Keith Chin moved from a member-at-large to Treasurer.
• Daniel Gant moved from the VP role to President to finish out the term that will end December 31.

We have one opening on the Board that we need to fill by appointment to finish out the term this year. If you are interested in helping improve the club and working together on our team, please email us: ucrcboard@gmail.com



Clubhouse Renovations

UCRC members funded the construction of our clubhouse over 40 years ago - what an accomplishment! Unfortunately, our little clubhouse has fallen into disrepair over the years. Aurelie is making a significant monetary contribution to jumpstart clubhouse renovations. We share a vision of a modern and inviting clubhouse with pro shop services for everyone. Our goal is to continue the laidback feel of UCRC, but offer an updated clubhouse that offers expanded services. Though we're on a shoestring budget, we have started to make repairs and will continue renovations in phases.

Phase 1: Termite fumigation, shrub removal (completed last week by board members) to create a welcoming entrance, remove rotted exterior decorative wood (also completed last week by board members), mitigate termite damage to structural elements, new roof AND restroom remodel!

Phase 2: Paint the interior and exterior, new flooring, new lighting, replace dry rotted wood trim.

We need your help! Do you have a construction background or DIY expertise? Do you have building materials you could donate like roof shingles or bathroom flooring, such as tile or luxury vinyl plank? Can you spare time to help us paint the clubhouse or landscape the clubhouse entrance or remodel the restrooms? Drop us an email and we'll hopefully develop a list of enthusiastic volunteers for an upcoming work party!

More than anything, your monetary donations will help our remodel go further, faster. Donations are gratefully accepted via Venmo:@ucrc-tennis1 or you can pay by check or credit card at the club in person or send a check by mail. Thank you for your support!

Thank you for selecting me as your new Director of Tennis for University City Racquet Club. I am excited to join your community and am honored by the support and relationships developed in San Diego since my family and I moved here in 2011. I recognize change tends to cause uncertainty, but let me assure you, I will maintain what members have experienced while enhancing the budget and services of UCRC.

All Court Tennis Academy’s (ACTA) record of transforming the instructional programs offered at tennis clubs operated under Special Use Permit from the City of San Diego's Parks and Recreation Department started 10 years ago in Tierrasanta. Strategic choices there improved aesthetics (patio covers & screens) and LED lighting. ACTA’s success on one teaching court at Tierrasanta led Rancho Penasquitos Tennis Center (RPTC) to choose me as their first Director of Tennis four years ago. Subsequently, RPTC has increased its net annual revenue from instructional programs from $35K to $160K, contributing to several improvements at the club.

Lastly, ACTA is passionate about instruction of all tennis players at any level. With multiple schools nearby and the variety of USTA teams playing for UCRC, the opportunity to positively impact players and grow the sport is why I do what I do. I look forward to meeting the members in person! (I’m the woman with the French accent) - Aurelie Udall



Aurelie has been busy recruiting instructors and planning both summer and fall programs for UCRC. We will have a few new instructors joining the club in July, who we'll introduce to you in our next update, but for now, Aurelie and one of her instructors, Julianna, will be teaching a couple clinics for us, as follows:

• Wednesdays, June 21 and 28, 6-7:30 PM: Doubles Clinic for 3.0/3.5
• Thursdays, June 22 and 29, 6-7:30 PM: Doubles Clinic for 3.5+

Clinics last 1.5 hours with level-based doubles strategy practice. Goals are positioning and targets and consist of live ball, feeding and match play.

If you're interested in signing up for these clinics, please email us at UCracquetclub@gmail.com. The limit for each clinic is 8 people, so please sign up in advance. Cost for each clinic is $30 and can be paid via Venmo:@ucrc-tennis1 or you can pay by check or credit card at the club in person. All players are welcome who feel the clinic level is appropriate for them!

• Private Lessons: if you're interested in scheduling a private lesson, until we make the switch to Court Reserve in the near future, please email Aurelie directly via aurelie.ucrc@gmail.com to request details on private lessons.

Additional clinics and instructional opportunities will be offered in the coming weeks and months, but please consider supporting the club and our new Director of Tennis by signing up for one of the clinics above + it's a great time to get out, have fun, and improve your game!

As we move forward, we would appreciate your continued support and hope you can help us improve and grow the club, be it through referring new members, your charitable donations, or simply getting out there on the courts. The UCRC website is always available as a resource to stay informed about daily court conditions, upcoming opportunities to play with other members, board meeting dates, past meeting minutes, club organization documents and more. 

The UCRC Board of Directors is an all volunteer group that strives to maintain transparency and open communication with our tennis community and especially all UCRC Members. We welcome input and questions you may have. Visit us at UCRCtennis.com and contact us anytime via UCRCBoard@gmail.com.

With "Love",

Your UCRC Board of Directors:

Daniel Gant - President

David Livingston - Secretary

Keith Chin - Treasurer

Bob Siegel - Member at Large

Lyn Balagtas - Member at Large

Eric Johanson - Member at Large