Keller Council Explores Pickleball Court Usage Ideas

Keller Council Explores Pickleball Court Usage Ideas: Pickleball’s growing popularity is leading to increased demand for public spaces dedicated to the game, and Keller is no exception.

During its June 4 work session, the Keller City Council deliberated on strategies to manage court access.

Council members received updates on Bear Creek Park’s open-play regulations and free-play opportunities in response to resident complaints about free-play schedules. The park currently boasts eight pickleball courts.

However, the meeting did not result in any concrete decisions regarding court usage. Mayor Armin Mizani hinted at future considerations for allowing league play on the courts.

Cody Maberry, the city’s director of community services, disclosed that his department receives around one Special Event Review Team permit request per quarter from various groups and associations. These requests typically seek to reserve the courts for a few hours, often on weekends or Friday nights.

Explaining the permit process, Rachel Reynolds, the city’s communication and public engagement manager, clarified that such permits are required for events necessitating city review and approval.

“From a [parks and recreation] standpoint, we were treating [the courts] just like our basketball courts or our volleyball courts—it’s first come, first served, The users were saying, ‘Well, this is a little different animal. There’s different levels of play, and there’s only so many courts [to] … accommodate so many people.’ So they wanted to come up with some kind of system that someone couldn’t hog the court all day and play.”-(Maberry)

Maberry elaborated on the challenges faced, highlighting the need to address the differing levels of play and limited court availability. He expressed the community’s desire for a fairer system to prevent individuals from monopolizing courts.

Debbie Bryan, vice president of pickleball with Northeast Tarrant Tennis and Pickleball, noted that Keller stands as an exception among neighboring cities in not allowing league play on its courts. She suggested implementing a league program, drawing from the experiences of other cities.

Addressing potential challenges, Maberry acknowledged the difficulty of enforcing rules without clear ordinances if league play were to be permitted.

Council Member Tag Green expressed openness to league play but stressed the importance of implementing reasonable limitations to prevent it from dominating court usage. He emphasized the need to maintain public access amidst increasing demands.

“The minute that tournaments or league play start to significantly limit the availability for public use, then I think we have to take another look at it,” he said.

In essence, while Keller navigates the evolving landscape of pickleball demand, the council remains mindful of balancing community needs with organized play initiatives.