Western Springs Explains Tennis Pro's Firing

WESTERN SPRINGS — Dave Evans, the longtime tennis pro whom the Western Springs village government fired last month, has a lot of support in the community. At least two demonstrations have been held demanding the village bring him back. And nearly 1,300 have signed an online petition in his support. His defenders say while he is eccentric, he puts the interests of the village tennis program first.

But Evans lacks the support of a key constituency — his bosses.

Through a public records request, Western Springs Patch has learned the village's stated reasons for its firing of Evans after more than 35 years as the head of the village's tennis program. The program serves tennis players in Western Springs and surrounding suburbs.

'Pattern of insubordinate behavior'

On June 9, Village Manager Ingrid Velkme sent Evans a three-page letter informing him that he was being fired for a pattern of insubordination that started two years earlier. Patch has been unable to reach Evans for comment.

According to the letter, Evans received a written reprimand in July 2018 for disregarding his supervisor's directive when leaking confidential information and then asserting a public position that was inconsistent with the village's position on the tennis program.

On Nov. 18, 2018, Evans was suspended until further notice because he disobeyed a directive by his supervisor and refused to comply with the supervisor's directions, the letter said. He was reinstated Jan. 8, 2019, but Velkme said his insubordination continued.

In May 2019, Evans was reminded he must copy his supervisor on any correspondence with the Western Springs Park District. And a month later, Velkme said Evans emailed the park district's executive director and copied about 50 people to the email about the planned installation of lights at the new tennis courts. He requested tennis players attend the next park board meeting to support his position. Velkme said Evans did not copy his supervisor.

Later in the summer, Evans emailed the park district's executive director complaining about the blended lines planned for the tennis courts, yet he knew this was a requirement for a United States Tennis Association grant that the district was seeking, Velkme said. His supervisor was contacted by the park district's executive director, who said Evans' actions jeopardized the possibility of getting the grant, Velkme said. (Patch was unable to immediately confirm with the park district about the status of the grant.)

According to the letter, Evans also got into hot water for planning an unapproved fundraiser for a backboard at the new tennis courts. That drew complaints from several people about all the fundraisers that Evans was planning, Velkme said.

In May, Evans clashed with his supervisor about the planning of summer tennis programs in light of the pandemic. Evans debated the state's guidelines with his supervisor and copied others in the emails, Velkme said.

Evans also emailed a participant stating the village would be able to use all seven courts at Spring Rock Park for lessons, even though his supervisor said only four were available, according to the letter. And he added a class without getting his supervisor's approval, Velkme said.

"Due to the pattern of insubordinate behavior and the fact that I do not believe you would address these same situations any differently in the future, I have decided to terminate your employment effective immediately," Velkme said.

"This really annoys me"

According to the documents, most of Evans' problems have occurred since Aleks Briedis took over as the village's recreation director in April 2019. The previous recreation director was Tracy Alden, who suspended Evans in 2018. According to his LinkedIn page, Alden held that job since 1985, which was two years after Evans started.

Through a public records request, Evans' defenders obtained more than 100 pages of correspondence between Evans and his superiors. In his final months, Briedis became increasingly testy with Evans. Just days before the firing, Briedis wrote Evans, "You go behind my back again like that and you are done. I do not need insubordination during a time like this."

In another email, he asked why Evans continually added people to email conversations. "This really annoys me," he said.

As early as August 2019, Briedis issued a warning in an email to Evans: "Do you want to continue being a village employee and be a part of the team or do you want to go off on your own and I start looking for someone else?"

Evans replied, "My bad. I will keep real quiet again."

In June 2019, on the lights issue, Briedis told Evans, "(P)lease stop saying things like 'Our residents deserve better' as if you are the only one that cares and we do not. We are all working for the residents."

"People are up in arms"

In an email to Patch, one of Evans' supporters, Mark Hansen, said Evans was known for introducing a lot of people to tennis and for providing many playing options. To do that, Hansen said, Evans put in a lot of effort organizing events.

"(T)hat helped make his program fun and accessible for players at a variety of levels, from juniors in top tournaments and middle-level players in team play to novice players in exhibition matches," Hansen said. "There was an aspect of community building and in getting to play kids from other suburbs that made Coach Dave's work in a public parks program unique and memorable and that's a large part to why a lot of people are up in arms about this."

According to village documents, Evans received 2.5 percent raises in 2018 and 2019. As of 2019, he received $48 an hour for 190 administrative hours annually.