The Riverside Clay Tennis Association was founded in 1984 as a lobbying group to oppose New York City Parks Department plans to pave over the public clay courts in Riverside Park.  After decades of neglect, the courts had significantly deteriorated – they were uneven, rutted and sandy with weeds everywhere – all but unplayable.  A group of dedicated locals, mostly older tennis players fond of the softer playing surface, persuaded the city to keep the clay courts in exchange for a promise to pitch in to help with the maintenance and fundraising necessary to revive and preserve them

By 1990, the RCTA had grown large enough to orchestrate the conversion from the original brown-green clay to true red clay.  Over the course of two seasons, RCTA laid the foundation for the red clay courts of today through the long, hard work of many devoted volunteers.

In 1992, the RCTA hired a groundskeeper and the following year a manager. The staff continued the process and eventually finished the full transformation to red clay courts.  Four years later, the staff designed and built a proper irrigation system using funds raised by RCTA members.

Soon enough, membership grew and fundraising increased.  The RCTA expanded beyond maintenance, running competitions and taking over general facility operations from NYC Parks.  Free summer concerts for the public flourished on a restored lawn along the Hudson River.  Junior tennis programs caught on, building the next generation of red clay tennis players in Riverside.  

In 2005, RCTA Joined forces with the Riverside Park Conservancy and created the Riverside Tennis Association.  The RCTA is part of the RTA, which aims to create the best possible tennis experience not only at the red clay courts, but also at the hard courts on 119th Street and Fort Washington (172nd Street) a bit farther up the Hudson.  The RTA is in turn a part of the RPC, a private nonprofit with a mission to make Riverside Park and everything in it beautiful, sustainable and accessible for all to enjoy.  Think of nesting dolls…RCTA is part of RTA which is part of RPC, all three of which are working towards a bright future for tennis in Riverside Park.

In 2025, RCTA offers a robust variety of different programs and has a fantastic staff of gate attendants and teaching professionals that ensure everyone who visits the courts will find something right for them.  Volunteers are still part of the RCTA team, taking shifts at the front gate and tending to the gardens around the perimeter of the courts.

The RCTA has roughly 1,000 current members and the annual budget of RTA as a whole recently surpassed $1,000,000, every penny of which stays in the park to fulfill our mission.  From adult groups to competitions to social events to junior tennis to public play, there’s so much to do here at the clay courts and we invite you to join us.  Executive Director JT Silberstein and Associate Director Will Koffler were hired in winter 2024 as the leadership duo responsible for both the affairs of the RCTA and the RTA as a whole.  They intend to bring new ideas and improvements to the clay courts while beginning to introduce the RCTA model at 119th Street and Fort Washington.