Photos: Proposed tennis arena near UAA

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Les Sheppard describes his vision of the tennis arena he wants to build on parkland near UAA on Thursday June 18, 2015. The facility would have nine indoor and eight outdoor tennis courts, which he plans to fund through the foundation he created for his late wife, Kathleen.

Les Sheppard dreams of building an Anchorage tennis complex.

He says he's got a plan to do it. He's eyeing 14 acres of city parkland near the University of Alaska Anchorage campus. He's paid a local engineering firm to draw up conceptual renderings of a complex with nine courts. He's taken soil samples.

City officials have said the dream is at best a long shot. He has not yet produced a business or financial plan. His idea has gotten a chilly reception from nearby community councils.

In spite of seemingly overwhelming hurdles, the 83-year-old Sheppard, a retired builder and longtime Anchorage tennis player, is determined to see it through.

"I know it's going to be successful," Sheppard said recently with a glowing smile, standing in the shaded grove to the northwest of the intersection of Northern Lights Boulevard and UAA Drive.

Read more: Retired Anchorage builder pursues dream of tennis complex