All are welcome to submit an application for consideration.
The City of Seattle is committed to promoting diversity in the city’s boards and commissions. Women, persons with disabilities, sexual and gender minorities, young persons, senior citizens, persons of color, and immigrants are encouraged to apply.
All you have to do for now is fill out the application form. Easy! Under “Which Boards would you like to apply for?” select “Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners”. If you need help with “What is your Residential Council District?“, visit this page and type in your address to find out your Seattle City Council District.
Are you nuts?
Absolutely not! There is an active pickleball player on the Mercer Island Parks Board. Why couldn’t there be one on Seattle’s Parks Board?
Treat others with respect. This is part of the Seattle Metro Pickleball Association’s Code of Conduct that all members must agree to before joining the association.
Respect the local rules
Most locations have posted rules. Respect them.
For instance, if a rule says that players can continuously occupy a court for an hour, do not attempt to force them to leave their court in the name of open play.
Respect local open play protocols
Be flexible. If you join open play at a particular location, find out the local play protocols and abide by them. If people are playing games to 9 when the courts are overflowing with players, then play to 9. If people are using rally scoring, then use rally scoring. If people want winners to stay on the court, let the winners stay on the court. If people want all players to rotate out after every game, do so.
If the local customs don’t suit you, try to change them by consensus, or find another play time or location with protocols that more closely match what you are looking for.
Walk a mile in their shoes
Don’t assume that someone who sees the world differently than you is wrong, boneheaded, stupid and doesn’t like you. Your way is not the only way.
Open play is not the only way
A lot of people get introduced to pickleball via open play: they show up at a location where people rotate in and out of the courts at the end of each game. Naturally, they tend to assume at first that all pickleball play is open play. That is not the case.
Even if I and a hundred of my closest friends converge on a specific location at a specific time with the intention of sharing those courts by rotating in and out of them after each game, we might not have any more rights to access those courts than people who want to have closed (private) play and occupy a court for an hour. It all depends on the local rules, and these rules are not always clear.
There are very few courts in the greater Seattle area that have a rule that requires open play at all times. There are a few courts that require open play at specific times as part of pickleball programs sanctioned by local parks departments.
Just in case you wonder, there are a lot of reasons why people might want to take part in closed play instead of open play. A group of close friends might want to play together for an hour. A family with young children might want to play together as a family. Players might want to practice for a tournament with and against specific partners. Coaches might want to teach lessons. You might want to work on specific drills with a partner. Don’t assume that you can freely join any and all pickleball games. Ask nicely. Don’t take rejection personally.
Closed play is often the rule of the land
A lot of the dual tennis/pickleball courts in the Seattle area have rules that favor closed play over open play.
Traditionally, tennis has been played on public courts by having two or four people agree to meet on a court to play a game for 60 to 90 minutes. The tennis court usage rules have been written to make this easy: They often allow games to last for 60 to 90 minutes before players need to cede the court to the next group.
These rules designed for tennis do not easily accommodate pickleball open play, where dozens of players share the same few courts and come and go at different times. Parks Departments are slowly adapting to the demand for more pickleball open play. If you want more sanctioned open play opportunities, make sure that you let your local government know about it regularly.
Respect court reservations
People sometimes assume that public pickleball courts are open to everyone at all times.
Be aware that some Parks Departments allow for court reservations.
If some players have a reservation, let them be. If you think your Parks Department should not allow reservations, that is an issue you should raise with your Parks Department.
In summary
You might disagree with some of the points above, and that is perfectly ok. Having many different perspectives will help make the pickleball world a better place for everyone as long as we treat each other with respect.
On Wednesday March 30th 2022, Seattle Parks held the first of two public meetings about their new outdoor pickleball study.
Seattle Parks said they will publish their meeting notes. I’m expecting they will be post them on their project web page.
In the meantime, people keep asking me what happened at the meeting. Here are my notes and my attempt at answering your most frequent questions.
–Miguel
Was this meeting about pickleball in the city of Seattle or the entire Seattle metro area?
It was organized by Seattle Parks to share the plan they are currently developing for the future of outdoor pickleball in the city of Seattle proper.
In five minutes or less, what is in the plan?
Seattle Parks’ plan is considering:
painting pickleball lines on more outdoor tennis courts in the next two years,
turning some little used outdoor tennis courts into dedicated pickleball courts in the next two to five years,
creating new dedicated outdoor pickleball facilities in the next five to ten years.
Overall, it is a good plan. The devil will be in the details. Speaking of details:
Seattle Parks still only wants to paint lines for 2 pickleball courts per tennis court. In contrast, Shoreview Park (the site of the Seattle Metro Pickleball Classic tournament) hosts 6 pickleball courts on two tennis courts.
Seattle Parks still thinks that blue pickleball lines are good enough for you and yellow pickleball lines would be too confusing for both tennis and pickleball players.
Yellow, blue and white court lines
The current version of the plan does not yet specify exactly which tennis courts will get new pickleball court lines in the short term, or exactly which tennis courts might be converted into dedicated pickleball courts in the medium term. Will all the tennis courts located next to community centers be lined for pickleball? Will pickleball players have access to large clusters of co-located courts?
The plan currently says nothing about having pickleball courts that have lights for evening play.
Seattle Parks is slowly accepting the importance of the “open play” pickleball culture and considering creating specific dedicated times for open play pickleball on some dual-use courts. They are already doing it at Miller, Delridge and Walt Hundley. We can only hope they will expand it to more locations.
There will be one more public meeting in early May where Seattle Parks will share an updated version of their plan with site and neighborhood-specific proposals.
Seattle Parks acknowledged pickleball’s rapid growth.
Oliver Bazinet, Senior Planner, said Seattle Parks is keenly aware that pickleball is growing rapidly and has benefits. Seattle Parks wants to plan for it.
Andy Sheffer, Deputy Superintendent of Operations, introduced the meeting by saying that he is a huge advocate of outdoor recreation and therefore outdoor pickleball is important to him.
Seattle Parks is relaxing their policy of promoting multi-use courts exclusively and is now considering creating some dedicated pickleball courts in the medium and long term.
What are the objectives of the new Outdoor Pickleball Study?
Document the growth of pickleball in Seattle
Refine where and how tennis courts will be dual-striped
Identify and recommend locations for new pickleball-only courts
Why are tennis players involved?
Adding pickleball lines to existing tennis courts has impact on the tennis community and therefore Seattle Parks is making sure to involve tennis players.
How many people attended the meeting?
About 130 people attended. About 73% were pickleball players, 7% were tennis players, 15% played both sports, and 4% played neither sport.
How is the pickleball study reaching out to the tennis and pickleball communities?
Seattle Parks conducted interviews
They have an Advisory Committee whose role is to collaborate with Seattle Parks and each other to provide insight into developing new recreational opportunities for pickleball.
They ran an online survey in January 2022
They have planned two community meetings: The first one happened on March 30th and is the one we are talking about here. The second one will happen in early May.
The names of the Advisory Committee members were provided at the meeting. I’m letting Seattle Parks decide whether or not to publish them more widely.
Keep in mind that the Advisory Committee is not creating the plan. Seattle Parks is creating the plan and asking for input from the Advisory Committee as it sees fit.
What were the results from the January online survey?
You can find the results in two parts here and here.
What is Seattle Parks’ new outdoor pickleball plan?
The plan has three components: Short-term, mid-term, and long-term.
Keep in mind that this plan is not set in stone. If you see something you love or something you don’t like, let Seattle Parks know.
What is the short-term plan?
In the short-term, Seattle Parks wants to add pickleball court lines to some neighborhood and community tennis courts throughout the city.
Advantages:
Increases the number of pickleball courts to accommodate the demand
Can begin this summer
Can be spread throughout the city
Drawbacks:
Decreases availability of tennis courts
Dual-striping may be confusing for players
Increased probability of on-court conflict
Q: The short-term plan is to add pickleball court lines to some “neighborhood and community tennis courts”. What exactly are “neighborhood and community tennis courts”?
There are about 32 locations with a total of 60 tennis courts that are “neighborhood courts” that have single or double tennis courts without lights. Think of the Georgetown or the Dearborn Park courts.
There are 18 locations with a total of 50 tennis courts that are “community courts”. These courts are located near community centers or have amenities such as lights and parking. Think of the Miller or Bitter Lake courts.
There are also two more locations with 6 tennis courts each that are “regional courts” and do not qualify. I believe these are the Solstice Park courts and the Meadowbrook courts.
The lower woodland tennis courts and the Amy Yee tennis courts are “major court complexes” and do not qualify.
Q: Is Seattle Parks planning to paint pickleball line on all neighborhood and community tennis courts?
Not all. Some.
Q: Which neighborhood and community tennis courts get new pickleball lines
Seattle Parks has not yet released a list.
Q: Don’t the Solstice Park tennis courts see very little use?
That is my impression as well.
Q: How many pickleball courts would Seattle Parks paint on two, three or four adjacent tennis courts?
Seattle Parks is planning to keep painting two pickleball courts per tennis court.
Q: Why are the Amy Yee and Lower Woodland tennis courts excluded?
They host USTA-sanctioned tournaments. Such tournaments can’t be held where there are pickleball lines on the courts.
Q: What is the mid-term plan?
In the mid-term, Seattle Parks proposes to convert some existing old low-usage tennis courts to dedicated pickleball courts.
Advantages:
Increases the number of pickleball courts to accommodate the demand
SPR will need approval from the communities where these courts are currently located
Some courts might require significant rehabilitation
Q: What do you mean when you say converting tennis courts into dedicated pickleball courts would provide “higher density of co-located courts”?
A: Let’s take a location that has two tennis courts on a single slab of concrete, with fences all around. Seattle Parks would paint lines for four pickleball courts in that space if they wanted to make it available to both tennis and pickleball players. Seattle Parks is saying that if they replaced the two tennis courts with pickleball courts, they would fit five or six pickleball courts in the same space. Here is an image that shows how Seatle Parks proposes that the space formerly occupied by two tennis courts could be modified to contain four regular pickleball courts, and one pickleball court that meets the playing area recommendations for wheelchair play as specified in sections 2.A.3 and 2.A.4 of the IFP rulebook.
What is the long-term plan?
The long-term plan is to construct new dedicated pickleball facilities.
Advantages:
increases the number of pickleball courts that are co-located
does not impact tennis
Drawbacks:
reduces open space
likely most costly
longest time horizon
Q: How long-term is this plan?
Seattle Parks estimated 5 to 10 years during the meeting. Personally, I have heard that Magnuson Park’s Tennis Center Sandpoint was 10 years in the making and that things have only gotten more complicated since then. Therefore, I think that 5 to 10 years is quite an optimistic estimate.
Q: What did people think of the plan?
A little over a third of the participants were more excited about the long-term plan, about a third preferred the short-term plan, and a little less than a third preferred the mid-term solution.
When asked “how do you think Seattle Parks can grow pickleball while balancing the needs of tennis?” the most frequent answer was “dedicated courts”.
When asked “who are the important community partners Seattle Parks should work with to achieve balance?” the most frequent answer was “SMPA”
When asked “Should Seattle Parks invest resources to dual strip more courts OR provide nets and pickleball play equipment?” participants overwhelmingly chose “invest resources to dual strip more courts”. Nets are important, but lines come first.
Q&A Session
The meeting concluded with a Q&A session. Here are most if not all of them.
Q: Are you planning to add pickleball court lines to tennis courts with lights?
A: It’s something we could look into. Not something we are doing right now. Good idea.
Q: What do you mean by immediate, medium term, long term?
A:
Immediate: this summer,
Medium term: dual striping 2-3 years
Long-term: dedicated: 5-10 years.
Q: Are you planning for indoor dedicated courts?
A: No. But we are considering outdoor covered dedicated pickleball courts in the long-term.
Q: Is anything done to mitigate pickleball noise?
A: No. Seattle Parks will consider proximity to residences when selecting tennis courts to be lined for pickleball. There are a lot of park activities that cause noise. You can’t choose to live near a park and then complain about park noise.
Q: Is there a publicly available tennis resurfacing schedule?
A: No. Right now, Seattle parks can only resurface 2 to 3 sites per year at most for budgetary reasons. Hopefully, they will get more money for court resurfacing in the new (Seattle Parks District?) budget, and then they’ll come up with a resurfacing schedule that they will make public.
Q: How about converting basketball courts to pickleball?
A: We do not have as many basketball courts as tennis courts, they don’t have fencing and they are small.
Q: Any consideration of the fact that pickleball players use less square footage than tennis?
A: It’s an advantage of pickleball but not a reason for converting tennis courts to pickleball. Same as not converting soccer fields to ultimate frisbee fields.
Q: Would raising money for dedicated pickleball courts accelerate the timeline?
A: Only up to a point.
Q: Why 2 pickleball courts to 1 tennis court ratio instead of more pickleball density?
A: Three reasons:
Far easier for players to see the lines.
Make sure that tennis and pickleball players are not running into each other.
Make sure it works with reservation system.
Q: Why is the current reservation system such a challenge?
A: “I don’t know. I need to study this myself.”
Q: Did the city study demand for each sport?
A: We looked at data from the court reservation system. We might do spot counts of people playing during summer. Will hear from people doing maintenance work or working at community center.
Q: Can we get yellow pickleball lines?
A: Yellow is too close to white. It would be confusing for both sports.
Q: Who paid for Amy Yee Tennis Center and Magnuson’s Tennis Center Sandpoint?
A: Amy Yee Tennis Center is built, owned and operated by Seattle Parks. Tennis Center Sandpoint is owned by Seattle Parks but was renovated and is run by a 3rd party.
Q: Could we get dedicated time for each sport?
A: Seattle Parks is discussing this internally.
Q: How about adding pickleball lines to Tennis Center Sandpoint and the Amy Yee Tennis Center courts?
A: Tennis Center Sandpoint: it would be up to them. Amy Yee Tennis Center: not enough space for tennis; maybe if they can expand.
Q: Lack of pickleball representation on Advisory Committee.
A: Almost all members of the advisory committee play pickleball. When writing the 2019 pickleball pilot report, Seattle Parks didn’t reach out enough to the tennis community. Seattle Parks wanted to explicitly reach out to the tennis community this time around.
Seattle Parks recently held a meeting to review their official policy that says that when they paint pickleball lines on outdoor tennis courts, they will only paint two pickleball courts per tennis courts, even if many more will fit.
Who represented tennis players at this meeting?
The Seattle Parks employee in charge of Seattle Parks’ Amy Yee Tennis Center and of all the outdoor public tennis courts.
Who represented pickleball players at this meeting?
Nobody. Pickleball players were not invited.
Who else attended this meeting?
We are told: a landscape architect, Seattle Parks planning, Seattle Parks grounds maintenance, Seattle Parks facilities maintenance, some external consultants, possibly someone from Seattle Parks finance.
What did these people who do not play pickleball decide?
They will keep painting only two pickleball courts per tennis court, even if more will fit.
Why?
They say that more pickleball court lines would be too confusing for both sports and make it difficult to manage court reservations.
Why should I care?
Because our schools need access to more collocated pickleball courts
The Physical Education teachers at the Lincoln High School and Hamilton Middle School in Wallingford would use the single tennis courts located at the Wallingford playfield if they each had lines for 4 pickleball courts. But Seattle Parks decided they would never paint more that 2 pickleball courts there.
Because the more collocated pickleball courts a location has, the better it supports a culture of inclusivity
Do you ever think that you cannot go play at a particular location because it is overcrowded? Do you ever think that there are not enough courts at a particular location to accommodate players of different skill levels? Well, most locations would be able to accommodate 50% to 100% more courts if Seattle Parks were willing to ditch its current policy.
All over the country, pickleball complexes are springing up. Why? Because the more the merrier.
Because Seattle Parks should make the best possible use of the court space it has
Would you paint lines for 2 tennis courts where 3 would fit? I didn’t think so.
But what about the confusing lines?
All the other sports fields have multiple lines. Why should tennis be special?
Actually, tennis no longer is special in a lot of town and cities across the country. In our own backyard, Shoreline hosts 6 pickleball courts on 2 tennis courts at Shoreview Park and Shoreline Park. Edmonds has lines for 8 pickleball courts on 2 tennis courts at Yost Park.
But what about reservations?
Where there is a will there is a way. Shoreline manages to allow people to reserve tennis courts at Shoreline Park even though they have more than 2 pickleball courts per tennis court.
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.
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.
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.
Do you dream of Bellevue having many sets of 6 or 12 dedicated outdoor pickleball courts in its parks system?
During a virtual Neighborhood Leadership Gathering on Thursday, Oct. 7 from 6:30 to 8:00pm, Bellevue Parks and Community Services staff will share the scope of the department’s many assets and services and the purpose of a master plan. You will have opportunities during the evening to share your priorities and dreams for the future of the Bellevue parks system.
We have done a great job making ourselves heard so far in the Mercer Island “Parks and Open Space Plan” update process.
Whether we will get new shared tennis/pickleball courts or DEDICATED pickleball courts depends on how much support for DEDICATED pickleball courts we will show at the upcoming Virtual Open House next Tuesday, September 28 at 5:30pm.
Please register today to attend this community meeting on Tuesday.
What would you like to see in parks, open spaces, & community centers in the coming years?
Seattle Parks asks you to help it plan for pandemic & economic recovery, responding to climate change, and supporting racial equity, by participating in their online open house: https://sprstrategicplan.infocommunity.org/
What does this have to do with pickleball?
They will ask you: Did you or your family use Seattle Parks and Recreation programs and spaces during the pandemic? If so, how did you participate? Make sure you answer something like the following if it rings true to you: [X] Other: I played pickleball on outdoor pickleball courts [x] times a week
They will ask you: Have you experienced barriers when trying to participate in Seattle Parks and Recreation programs? Make sure you answer something like the following if it rings true to you : [X] Other: (1) Indoor pickleball facilities are often overcrowded. (2) Many outdoor pickleball courts still don’t have pickleball nets. (3) Why are tennis players allowed to reserve pickleball courts when there are plenty of tennis-only courts available exclusively for them?
They will ask you: What are you or your family most excited about as we move toward reopening our facilities and community spaces? Make sure you answer something like the following if it rings true to you : [X] Other: Indoor and outdoor pickleball
They will ask you: What types of programming would best support you as Seattle continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic? Make sure you answer something like the following if it rings true to you : [X] Other: Intro to pickleball classes Rec’n The Streets pickleball Drop-in indoor and outdoor pickleball
Seattle Parks hosts Big Day of Play as a celebration of Seattle’s diversity and it encourages neighbors, communities and families to have fun, build relationships and be active together. It’s the day to play your way! We see this as the perfect day to advocate for pickleball. Read on.
When
This year, the Big Day of Play is taking place Saturday August 21 from noon to 4pm. You don’t have to be there all four hours; gather a group of pickleball friends and drop by when convenient.
Where
The event takes place outdoors at Rainier Playfield, across the street from the Rainier Community Center.
Be sure to look at the four tennis courts located on the playfield, across the street from the Community Center. These courts see very little use throughout the year, yet the Seattle Parks Department refuses to paint pickleball court lines on them. The Rainier Community Center has 6 indoor pickleball courts and historically enjoyed a large, active, and diverse community of pickleball players. Wouldn’t it make sense to paint pickleball court lines on the outdoor tennis courts right across the street from the community center?
Why
This is your chance to talk to the Seattle Parks District Oversight Committee and the Seattle Board of Park Commissioners. These two groups have some oversight of the Parks Department. Several of their members will be present at the Big Day of Play. They will be asking attendees the following questions: – What is the Seattle Parks Department doing well and should keep doing? (A: Host a large and diverse pickleball community at the Rainier Community Center. Reach new players through their Rec’n The Streets program.) – What is the Seattle Parks Department doing poorly and should stop doing? (A: Seattle Parks only allows pickleball on the least desirable tennis courts. This is redlining and it is time to stop that practice. In particular, stop vetoing painting pickleball court lines on the Rainier Playfield tennis courts.) – What is the Seattle Parks Department not doing yet that it should start doing? (A: Allocate court use equitably across tennis and pickleball.)
Tell them to start painting pickleball court lines on the Rainier Playfield tennis courts. The Parks department has already painted, is about to paint or has already recommended painting pickleball lines on most outdoor tennis courts adjacent to community centers in other parts of the city. There is no reason to make an exception with Rainier. And no, this is not a highly used tennis court. Their own data shows that these courts are reserved an average of only 45 minutes a day.
Tell them that the Parks department insists on painting pickleball lines only on the least desirable tennis courts. This is discrimination plain and simple, and has to stop.
Tell them to allocate money to fund pickleball recreation programming and pickleball facilities in their next budget. They are about to allocate a boatload of money to the Parks Department for the next six years. In their first budget cycle, they allocated: – $26,681,070 for Parks and Recreation Operating Expenses, supplementing and expanding the capacity of Seattle Parks and Recreation to serve Seattle residents. – $142,927,236 for Capital Projects, investing in infrastructure and improvement projects for Seattle Parks and Recreation to preserve and maintain Seattle’s park system. And all that is just a small part of the Parks Department’s total budget.
In their last budget they allocated over to $2,000,000 to tennis for Amy Yee Tennis Center upgrades and for drainage improvements at the Laurelhurst Playfield outdoor tennis courts. In that same budget, they allocated $0 to pickleball recreation programming and $0 to pickleball facilities.
Tell them that it is not acceptable to fund tennis and leave pickleball unfunded.
In Summary
Come to Rainier Playfield on Saturday August 21 anytime between noon and 4pm.
Find the Seattle Parks District Oversight Committee members and the Seattle Board of Park Commissioners. They will likely sport name tags that will make it easy to identify them. Other pickleball players will help you in your search.
Tell them to paint pickleball court lines on the Rainier Playfield tennis courts.
Tell them that the Parks Department practice of painting pickleball lines only on the least desirable tennis courts is discrimination that must end.
Tell them to allocate money to fund pickleball recreation and facilities in their next budget. And it is no longer acceptable to fund tennis and leave pickleball unfunded.
Make it personal: Tell them how pickleball has affected your life.
Grab a group of friends to come with you if you can. If not, don’t worry: you will recognize others from the pickleball community when you get there.
END OF APRIL UPDATE: The Seattle Parks Department only organized pickleball on the Jefferson tennis courts (as announced in the flyer above) twice. Then they quit doing it and forgot to tell the pickleball players about it. So players are still showing up and organizing games on their own.
The Seattle Parks and Recreation (SPR) Department is organizing Senior pickleball on the Jefferson Park outdoor tennis courts, next to the Jefferson Community Center on Beacon Hill.
This program is part of SPR’s “Rec’n The Streets” program. In case of iffy weather, check out the Rec’n Streets schedule and notifications on their Facebook page.
In spite of the picture above that shows people playing on a pickleball court with pickleball lines and a pickleball net, there are no pickleball nets or pickleball lines on the Jefferson Park tennis courts.
On Friday April 9, SPR had brought two rolls of blue masking tape, hoping that pickleball players would know how to use them to mark court lines. They also brought a net that was smaller than standard.
On one court, pickleball players used chalk to mark the pickleball lines and use the tennis net as the pickleball net.
Some players marked one court with chalk and used the tennis net as you can see on the picture above. Other players spent a long time laying down masking tape to line a second court and used their own portable pickleball nets.
There are rumors that SPR is considering buying “bright yellow line markers” for next time. They might also have real pickleball nets. In any case, if you have chalk or a portable pickleball net, bring them.
