Slidell Mayor Greg Cromer says the city would like to host large sporting events for the traveling youth sports industry, but there needs to be a place they will come to first. The plan is to build on the existing recreational facilities around the city. The projects will not only expand the current facilities but will also improve the existing structures. 
The first project will be renovating and expanding the Second Street tennis courts. They will add two courts to the existing six to make a total of eight courts making the center big enough to hopse tournament play. Other projects that are under the $1.5 million that is allocated to the enhancements include a skate park and pickleball courts at John Slidell Park, and purchasing 20 acres of land along Spartan Drive that will be turned into multi-purpose fields and soccer fields.
The city is working with a consulting firm that is advising Slidell on how to attract “lucrative youth sports markets.” The Mayor says that the economic analysis should be completed by the end of this month. The consulting firm is the same one that St. Tammany Corp used in 2021 to conduct a study on a casino-funded sports center. Part of the firm’s goal is to help Slidell with finding investors.
