Port Moody’s Pickleball Courts: Port Moody council members are upset about delays in building a planned pickleball facility behind City Hall. During a June 10 meeting, the council learned the project—approved years ago—still hasn’t moved forward and now needs an extra $150,000 due to rising costs and permit delays.
The pickleball court project is one of seven that require more funding following a first-quarter 2025 review of capital projects by the finance and parks departments. The total cost has nearly doubled because of rising material and labor expenses since the original 2021–2022 estimate, as well as unexpected costs tied to archaeological investigations at the site.
Mayor Questions Delays and Permits
Port Moody Mayor Meghan Lahti voiced frustration with city staff, saying,
“This is really disappointing. These two decisions were made at the early days of this council… It’s really frustrating to give direction and then not see it happen.”-(Meghan Lahti )
Lahti asked when the project would be completed. In response, Kim Law, acting general manager of engineering and operations, said the project is still in early design. He explained that the site has high archaeological potential and requires permits that take six months to a year, but staff haven’t yet applied for them.
Lahti responded,
“We asked for this three years ago. Why did this not come forward at the time? Why are we only now just making those applications? Why has this been sitting there for this amount of time, and now we’re being told it’s another six months?”-(Meghan Lahti)
City manager Anna Mathewson noted that staff had presented a short-term strategy for tennis and pickleball in the past year, which took up resources.
“It’s not like we’re just starting the project now. This project has been underway for a little while, and we’ve been navigating with some of the Indigenous advising… over the last few months.”-(Anna Mathewson)
Council Demands Faster Reporting
Paul Rockwood, general manager of finance, shared that the city investigates any project that hasn’t started within three years of being approved. However, Councillor Callan Morrison said this timeline is “way too long,” and that delays drive up costs and freeze important funding.
“I want to know which ones haven’t started earlier, rather than three years down the road,” he said. Councillor Kyla Knowles agreed, stating that departments should finish high-priority work before requesting new funds.
Rockwood added that a new capital planning report system will soon be used to give quarterly updates on project progress.
News in Brief: Port Moody’s Pickleball Courts
Port Moody council is frustrated by delays in a long-planned pickleball facility. The project, approved years ago, now needs more money and hasn’t begun due to slow permit work. Mayor Meghan Lahti and other council members criticized staff for poor communication and urged faster action to meet community needs.