Vancouverites will soon have 36 new places to play pickleball, one of the fastest-growing sports in the country.
It’s all thanks to the Vancouver Parks Board and pickleball groups which got the municipal government to account for building high-quality courts across the city.
Once finished, the courts can be used for everyday leisurely games or full-blown tournaments.
Originally, the City said it would take three years to build the courts, which wasn’t quick enough for the Parks Board. After some pestering, the board got permission to occupy nine tennis courts and 36 pickleball courts around the city — effective immediately.
“This is a historic win for pickleball in our city,” reads a statement from the Vancouver Pickleball Association.
The sport played with wooden paddles first got big in Canada in the ’70s, according to Pickleball Canada. Many of the rules were adapted from tennis, ping pong, and badminton. The organization explains the rules on its website.
“The ball must bounce twice, once on each side of the court, before players can hit the ball in the air or on the ‘volley’. When the ball is served, it bounces in the receivers service court, the serving team must stay back and wait for the ball to bounce again on their side before they can move up and play the ball in the air,” the page says.
The non-volley zone, points, faults, and more are other key concepts to understand before playing.
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Eight courts will be at the Jericho public tennis courts and another eight will be at Memorial South Park.
There will be four courts at Andy Livingston public tennis courts, eight at Strathcona Park, and eight at Champlain Heights Park.
“The Parks Board will install signs informing the public that the courts now constitute temporary facilities for pickleball only and will lower the tennis nets, so they function as catch nets. The VPA will be responsible for everything else,” said a statement from the VPA.
Portable nets and lockboxes have been ordered for every site, and staff is installing windscreens at Jericho. If needed, the windscreens may go up at other locations as well.
It will take a while to pressure wash and paint the courts, and taping will begin once nets and lockboxes are installed.
The VPA explains the project “allows us to have 36 new temporary courts while we await the permanent courts in several years.”
“We have permission to do everything we can to make these 36 courts our home,” says its statement.
Once they’re up and running, the courts will be reserved for pickleball only.
Still, there are residents on the west side who still want more courts and the board says it will continue to advocate for them.
If you want to help tape, clean, paint, manage the courts, or donate items, send the VPA an email.
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