Camas indoor tennis court breaks ground

The Camas High School tennis teams were forced to cancel more than 40 percent of their matches and practices during the 2025-26 school year because of weather conditions. Beginning next school year, that number will drop to zero — and remain there for the foreseeable future.

The Camas School District and United States Tennis Association Pacific Northwest held a groundbreaking ceremony May 12 at Camas High for a new indoor tennis facility that will provide year-round courts to players of all ages and abilities.

“Our weather will no longer dictate when our students can compete,” Camas School District Superintendent John Anzalone said. “We’re moving from a seasonal program to a year-round hub of excellence.”

The event featured speeches from Anzalone, USTA Pacific Northwest CEO Matthew Warren, Camas school board President Connie Hennessey, Camas High Principal Kelly O’Rourke, Camas High boys and girls tennis coach Annie Sumpter, and Camas High tennis player Rainy Wu, as well as ceremonial dirt-digging, performances from the school’s band and cheerleaders, food trucks, giveaways and more.

Set to open this fall, the facility will offer a “transformational chapter for students, families, and the broader Camas community” and give young athletes, especially Camas High’s tennis team members, a place to play, grow and compete, according to a news release.

“Having a bubble over our courts means more to us than just having a roof over our heads,” Wu said. “Having a space where we can consistently practice will make our team stronger, not only as players, but as friends, too. This bubble isn’t just improving courts. It’s an investment in our athletes, our students and the Camas community.”

When the courts are not in use by the school district, they will be available for public use, hosting programs and recreational play.

“For us, today’s groundbreaking also commences a new chapter in our shared commitment — a commitment by the Camas School District and the United States Tennis Association Pacific Northwest that student-athletes will have equitable opportunities to play tennis, and that Clark County, a community long underserved in access to indoor tennis courts, will have expanded access to year-round tennis,” Warren said.

Sumpter said rainy spring weather has created major logistical challenges for a no-cut girls program that can include as many as 90 players. When the outdoor courts are unplayable, she is forced to move practices to the school’s gymnasiums, where athletes have limited space to train and cannot fully replicate match conditions.

“To coach a sport that really is a fair-weather or sunny-day sport, and to have to go inside the gym with 90 girls, it’s not very much fun,” Sumpter said. “Because I love the sport so much, I just didn’t feel like (our current situation) was giving our kids the same opportunity and experience that we want them to have — to love the sport of tennis as something they can do forever.”

The district entered into a 30-year partnership with USTA Pacific Northwest in 2024 to build and operate the new facility, which will cover the school’s eight outdoor courts with a fabric “bubble.”

After the organization pledged $2 million for the project, the district agreed to provide $1 million from its capital fund budget.

The project will involve three organizations — USTA Pacific Northwest; Farley Group, an Ontario-based construction company that will manufacture the dome; and a yet-to-be-selected court-resurfacing entity — Dax Logsdon, executive director of Vancouver-based Construction Services Group, said during the district’s Feb. 10 workshop session.

“We are overjoyed at the possibility of widening access for both high school students and the public in Camas to be able to play tennis and promote active lifestyles,” Warren said.