Scott Radley: Pickleball is in a pickle in Hamilton this summer

You might think providing pickleball to those who want it would be relatively easy when you've got 24 almost-new, city-owned outdoor courts at your disposal.

Think again.

Just a few months after the city found itself in the middle of a turf war of sorts between two factions of the local pickleball community - which one of the groups says has led to them being shut out of 12 of those courts - a second paddle has now dropped.

The other dozen public courts at Confederation Park have now been shut down for the summer.

That is correct," says the city's manager of sport services, Steve Sevor. Unfortunately our recreation staff were informed that there is some warranty work that's still happening and some phase construction for the entire park that doesn't make it available for this summer."

He says the recreation department just learned of this recently and had to post the bad news on its website.

To say a the folks who enjoy the game - a racquet sport that uses a smaller court than tennis and is commonly cited as one of the faster-growing activities, especially among mature athletes - are unhappy with this would be more than a fair statement.

It's not ideal," says Bill Stewart, executive member of the Hamilton Association of Recreational Pickleball.

It's just not a good thing," says Pickleball Hamilton board member John Sharp. You're looking at a brand-new facility that's going to sit empty."

The origin of this story goes back to the end of last year.

For some time, six of the new courts at Hill Park Recreation Centre at Upper Wentworth Street and Mohawk Road East were operated by Pickleball Hamilton and used by members who'd paid $150 for the year. The other six were open to the public and commonly used by HARP which doesn't charge fees.

But when the city decided it didn't have the staff to operate the facility properly, it asked Pickleball Hamilton to manage all of them. The club (which had raised $25,000 to help pay for them) agreed. Which was great news for those who want tournaments, lessons, contact tracing, social events and other organized perks but infuriated those who merely want to play for free on public property.

Of course, for the latter group there was always the option of travelling across town to Confederation Park where they could use any of the 12 new public courts without cost. Which is apparently what many did in the past. Stewart says the courts were jammed last year, especially in the evenings.

Not just with these folks, either. Sharp says Pickleball Hamilton is growing so fast, some members can't always get court time when they want it so this offered additional space for them, too.

But since they opened in 2020, the acrylic courts have seen degradation" including low spots, heaving, bubbling and cracking, according to the city. So they need repairs.

The City is working with the contractor on a remedial action plan to address the deficiencies under the warranty," says acting director of environmental services Cynthia Graham.

But that's not the only problem. The courts are also in the middle of an active construction zone - a field house and cricket pitch are being built - and Graham says they can't be open for safety reasons.

This leaves few options for many players. Those who can't get court time for whatever reason can try to find one of the 20-or-so makeshift courts the city has created on some tennis courts around town. But ...

That's a work in progress," Sevor says.

Meaning there are some that are good to go. Others are still having lines put down and aren't ready yet.

Either way, Stewart says they now have limited options and will have to fight for space with tennis players. Sharp simply calls it a bad look to have a new facility just sitting there unused. Sure it's a construction zone during the day but why not let people play in the evening when work stops?

As for Sevor, he says he understands the frustration. He only found out about the closed courts himself and gets why some would be upset.

That said, when things get finished at Confederation Park there will be a field house, plenty of parking and perfect courts. The improved facilities will be appreciated and well used, he's sure.

For this summer, though?

I definitely knew this was going to be an issue."

Scott Radley is a Hamilton-based columnist at The Spectator. Reach him via email: sradley@thespec.com