Miami Tennis Club courts on Gold Coast hwy to be demolished for light rail

Young tennis prodigies and their coach are ‘devastated’ after they were told council will demolish their home courts to make way for the contentious tram extension.

Some of the city’s best young tennis players will be without a court in two months when the original home of the Miami Tennis Club is ripped up for light rail works.

The three-court centre on the Gold Coast Highway will be turned into a construction compound and used for “civic space” after the track is built.

The Gold Coast City Council, custodians of the state government-owned land, said it would compensate the club for breaking the lease, but would not reveal the details of the deal.

Devastated AB Tennis Academy coach Alberto Beltran with students Amali Zillmann 14 (left) and Juan Beltran 15(right) at Miami Tennis Club, which will be demolished to make way for a council-owned construction compound for light rail Stage 3 stage along the Gold Coast Hwy. Picture Glenn Hampson

High-performance coach Alberto Beltran said he was told late last month that by June 30 he would be without a home. The 25-30 top-flight players he mentors each week include players on the junior pro circuit.

“It’s terrible news for everyone. For the players, for the parents and for me,” he said.

“This is my business and my income for my family and we all now face an uncertain future.”

Mr Beltran said the junior pro players and their parents were “devastated” and did not know where they would train once the courts are destroyed.

“The tennis centres on the Gold Coast are packed and I don’t exactly know where we will go next,” he said.

The Miami Tennis Club said the council negotiations, which started in August 2021, were “difficult” and the decision to break the lease was “not taken lightly”.

“We want the best for Alberto and his students but he also needs to come forward to the High Performance Tennis Academy (HPTA) so discussions can be had about the future,” club president Allison Peters said.

The courts are close to seven decades old. Picture: Supplied.

“Part of our negotiations with council were on the proviso that we could discuss the potential for two additional courts to be built at Pizzey Park.

“Alberto is a rare case in which he’s the only person to not have a formal coaching agreement with the club, but has hired the highway courts to coach at an elite level.”

Ms Peters said while Mr Beltran hired a court at Pizzey Park for evening coaching, allocating more court time during daytime hours would be dependent on availability.

“Once those discussions have been had we will know what our options are, otherwise Alberto will have to look at other centres on the Gold Coast to see what they have available.”

Ms Peters said she would prefer not to discuss the details of the compensation paid out by council.

Tony Zillmann, a single parent whose 14-year-old daughter Amali trains with Mr Beltran, has spent $80,000 in a two-year period fostering her professional growth.

He is now asking “was it all for nothing”.

“I’m so frustrated with the whole thing. It’s like fighting a losing battle and Gold Coast City Council doesn’t care,” he said.

One of the courts on the Gold Coast Hwy. Picture: Supplied.

“They really are making the Gold Coast unliveable. I don’t know at this point where Alberto or the kids can go.”

Mr Zillmann said council “could have found a site anywhere” and “tennis is already competitive enough as it is”.

“If it was vacant land I would get it,” he told the Bulletin.

“Alberto has done so much for that club and it seems like a real kick in the guts to the local community.”

In a statement from council, a city spokesperson said City of Gold Coast had been in negotiations with the State Department of Transport and Main Roads regarding the temporary leasing of the highway site for use as a “construction compound to facilitate construction of light rail Stage 3.

“A suitable compensation amount has been offered to voluntarily surrender the club's lease, effective June 30, 2022,” the spokesperson said.

“At the completion of the construction of the light rail, the park will be reinstated into a civic space to benefit local residents and the broader community.”

The original Miami Tennis Club was founded in 1952 and the highway courts were constructed in 1954.