Summary
Bellevue pickleball players have been making steady progress in convincing the Bellevue Parks Board to support pickleball. They will be proposing short and long term solutions at the next Bellevue Parks Board meeting on Tuesday, November 9.
Right now, we need to express our support for their short-term solution of painting (better) pickleball lines on specific tennis courts.
What is going on
Bellevue Parks has been painting lines for a single pickleball court on a tennis court in multiple locations. This is inadequate because:
- It is making poor use of the available real estate. You can easily fit two pickleball courts on a single tennis court.
- It doesn’t take into account that pickleball as a strong social component that is only possible if a substantial number of pickleball courts are clustered together.
- A tennis net, even if it is lowered, is not the same as a pickleball net. The net height is usually off and there is no opportunity for “around the post” shots.
It is much better to paint pickleball court lines on each side of the tennis net and provide permanent roll-away pickleball nets.
What to do
Please email the Bellevue Parks Board, with the subject line “Written Communications – November 9“, by Tuesday 3pm and ask them to line the tennis courts at Hilaire, Crossroads, Norwood and Lakemont Park to accommodate at least 2 pickleball courts per tennis court, and to allow permanent roll-away pickleball nets. All written comments received prior to 3pm on November 9 will be read or summarized into the record at the meeting.
If you want to do more
Check out three easy things to do today to ask Bellevue Parks for more pickleball courts.
Take this Bellevue Parks survey by November 8 and ask for more indoor and outdoor pickleball activities.
If you want to know more
To attend the 6pm Parks Board meeting on November 9, go to https://cityofbellevue.zoom.us/j/93884171236. The passcode will be 571753.
Check out Bellevue’s Parks and Open Space System Plan web page.