Gleneagles Park Pickleball Plans Stalled: A vote to move forward with a new design for Gleneagles Adventure Park in West Vancouver did not pass on Monday. The plan included keeping the skate bowl and adding a pump track and two pickleball courts, but the council could not agree on the number of courts or the overall layout.
Plan Faces Opposition and Debate
West Vancouver council had discussed a revised park design after public feedback earlier this year. An earlier version suggested removing the skateboard bowl and dirt jumps to make space for a large pump track and four full-size pickleball courts.
But after speaking with residents, city staff brought a new proposal. This version kept the skateboard bowl, added a smaller pump track, a street-style skate area, and two pickleball courts.
Residents and Speakers Share Mixed Views
Council heard from 23 speakers. Some supported the updated plan, while others wanted more pickleball courts.
Richard Thorpe, who is turning 87 this year, said, “We really appreciate the Normanby courts. They’re very actively used often. My concern … is that maybe with [Gleneagles] you may be trying to solve too many problems at once, and providing a half a solution for each.”
He added, “Putting two pickleball courts in there will defeat a lot of the social requirements that we’d like to have. If there’s only two courts, I think you’ll find that it is inadequately used.”
Others supported the current layout, which includes features for youth.
Jim Barnum said, “The bowl is intimidating. The street skate park will draw skaters to the site, get them warmed up, get them skating around, and eventually – especially with the addition of the pump track, where they can hone the skills that are required to skate the bowl – they’re going to step into that bowl.”
He also added that using the nearby BC Hydro land for extra pickleball courts “sounds like a great idea.”
BC Hydro Land Becomes Part of the Discussion
A late suggestion to explore building courts on the BC Hydro land across the street created more debate.
Mayor Mark Sager said, “This is a new idea, but we will have the resources to enter into those discussions and potentially design something there so that we could increase our pump track or some other facilities.”
Councillor Scott Snider supported the current plan. He said, “It is a little bit of a compromise on everybody. I know that it’s trying to fit everything into one small space, but I think it achieves [that]. I think that the future of that area is going to be quite vibrant and lively.”
Push for More Courts Causes Split
Some council members pushed for three or four pickleball courts.
Councillor Christine Cassidy said using the Hydro land for the pump track might work better. “It could have, in an entity unto itself, the exclusivity of that site,” she said. “And the skateboarders on the other side be satisfied with an updated i.e. repaired and useful [bowl], and also to allow the pickleball people to have their site.”
Councillor Nora Gambioli tried to find a middle ground. She made an amendment asking staff to prepare design ideas for two or three courts, even if they were not full-size.
But Councillor Sharon Thompson and others still wanted at least three or four courts in the main plan.
In the end, only Mark Sager, Nora Gambioli, and Scott Snider supported the motion. The vote failed, and no date has been set for further discussion.
News in Brief: Gleneagles Park Pickleball Plans Stalled
West Vancouver council voted against a plan to redesign Gleneagles Adventure Park with two pickleball courts and other features. Disagreements over court numbers and use of nearby BC Hydro land led to the failed motion. More talks are expected, but no date has been set for the issue to return.
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