The village planning board gave its approval to the first phase of Bassett Healthcare's $52 million facilities master plan Tuesday afternoon, but not before hospital officials assured the board that the prognosis was good - tennis would be alive and well in the birthplace of baseball.

"This will not eliminate tennis in Cooperstown," Bassett President and CEO Dr. William Streck said following a public hearing on the plan in which it was revealed during questioning from residents that the tennis courts at Bassett Hall would be removed to make way for parking.

Susquehanna Avenue resident Bob Satriano said he had heard rumors the tennis courts would be coming out and the hillside traditionally used by neighborhood children for sledding would be bulldozed.

Hospital vice-president Joe Middleton said that in response to perennial concerns from residents living around the institution about employees parking on village streets, the hospital had localized the problem and devised a plan to address it.

Following an investigation, Middleton said, it became apparent most of the employees parking in residential areas worked at Bassett Hall. To remedy the situation, the hospital plans to add 75 parking spaces behind the building, but the tennis courts will have to go. The sledding hill will not be touched.

The hospital cannot dictate where employees park so its approach to the problem was to make employee parking more convenient than on-street parking in residential neighborhoods, Middleton explained.

"It's a little disheartening to think the tennis courts are going to go," Satriano said.

The tennis courts are private, but open to the public to use. The courts are also the ones used by the Cooperstown High School tennis team, Streck said. The hospital has no plans to construct new courts.

The meeting and hearing were attended by students from CCS's Participation in Government class and the news did not make them happy.

Cooperstown was always recognized as a great place to grow up because of the facilities, said one student who voiced her objection to the plan.

"At this time it appears that to meet the requests of the neighbors regarding parking we will have to use the tennis court site for parking. We remain very aware that the tennis courts are part of the community and are looking for alternatives, but at this time it appears we will need the space," Streck said.

He added that the hospital was in a Catch-22 situation. The neighbors are upset about employees parking on village streets, but in order to address those concerns the tennis courts have to come out, which upsets the neighbors.

"The ultimate irony," Streck told the planning board, "is that we may lose the tennis courts to create parking and employees will still park on the street."

The planning board did not appear ready to vote on phase one of the plan because of concerns over the parking plan. The hospital has retained an outside firm to study the parking situation and compile a report, but it is not completed.

"We really have to take into account the feelings of the neighbors," said planning board member Bill Rigby.

Planning board chairman Paul Kuhn said the board was charged with maintaining the residential quality of the village and felt personally obliged to consider the impact on the surrounding neighborhood.

Parking was not originally part of the first phase of the project, but the hospital had agreed to address the issue during the planning board's review, Streck and Middleton told the board as they pressed for approval of the plan. "It's not a necessary component of phase one. I don't understand why additional information is needed," Middleton said. "The reason we put parking into phase one is the concern of the neighbors. I'm getting the impression we haven't given the board something it needs to make a decision. The parking at Bassett Hall is in response to the neighbors concerns."

"I don't want to see the parking issue drawn out for years," Rigby said.

Streck and Middleton both gave assurances the hospital is committed to solving the parking problem.

"If we can create parking spaces without the tennis courts we would like to do that," Middleton said as he asked the board to consider a motion to approve the plan with the provision that the hospital would continue its parking analysis.

"We want to make sure this doesn't get shoved back to 2004," Kuhn said.

"You have our commitment that we will address it," Middleton replied.

The board voted unanimously to approve the project.

Following the vote, Middleton confided that there were discussions currently underway concerning the construction of new courts, but did not offer details.