What is the Future of Pickleball in Sarasota?
There I was, driving down a two-lane country road in Moriah, New York; a town with more cows then humans, when I came across four dedicated pickleball courts. Huh? Right there on the side of the road, across from a pasture dotted with black and white cows. I slammed on the breaks because I could not believe my eyes. Here in this bucolic setting were pickleball courts, dedicated pickleball courts. This was three years ago when I was visiting upstate New York. How did the residents of the farming community of Moriah get four outdoor courts while in north Sarasota and close to the area where I live, and with a much more affluent and larger tax base, not have dedicated pickleball courts?
While Sarasota County has graciously lined their gyms for pickleball, play is at limited times and availability, and not enough courts for competitive tournaments and clinics. Plus, visitors ask me all the time for outdoor court locations because they come down here escaping the cold and want to play in the sun. There are no dedicated outdoor courts in north Sarasota county, as of yet. In south Sarasota, I can send them to Venice at Bypass Park and Englewood Sports Complex which has dedicated courts but that is a good 45 minute drive from my home. Somebody said if you are traveling that distance you might as well go to Pickleplex in Punta Gorda, the outstanding new complex devoted to pickleball with 16 courts and more to come.
I had the opportunity to speak to Jim Wormley, Sarasota Parks and Recreation Manager, who has been our go to person for pickleball questions. We talked about the lack of dedicated courts, and he confirmed that in 2021 there will be 6 dedicated pickleball courts built next to the athletic building at Longwood Park. And in the future, 12 dedicated pickleball courts will be constructed next to Babe Ruth Park where the old DMV was off Fruitville, known as the Pompano Project. (In the future could mean a few years.) Below is an old flyer showing the indoor places to play in Sarasota.
Currently, there are 6 dedicated courts in Central County at Bypass Park and 6 dedicated courts in the South County at Englewood Sports Complex. There are also 42 shared court opportunities throughout the County.
A few newsletters ago, I posted a conceptual drawing of the proposed North County Athletic Project that will possibly have 12 dedicated pickleball courts. That plan is from 2016 and is in very early planning stages and things may change. The proposed location is off Martin Luther King Drive by Newtown Park.
A far as the City of Sarasota and pickleball goes, their conceptual master plan does NOT have pickleball courts. There currently are two facilities for indoor pickleball, Arlington Park and RL Taylor Community Complex; plus outdoor at Gillipsie Park on the tennis courts where one court is lined for pickleball (2 courts), and they have nets available that players can move on and off.
There lies the problem, sharing courts with tennis players. Tennis players are not happy. They have had the luxury of showing up to play anytime of day and having no trouble finding a court. Now, what is this? Pickleball players are taking over?! This has led to some very uncomfortable confrontations. I was playing on the Siesta Key courts when our ball traveled onto the adjacent court and a snarling tennis player threw it back and warned us it better not happen again. Gulp!
At Colonial Oaks Park where one of our pickleball players has taken it upon himself to loosely organize drop-in play every day on the shared tennis courts, tennis players can come and demand a court as they are entitled to have first-dibs on one side. So, let me paint the picture. We have over 20 people playing on 4 courts and they must relinquish 2 courts where 8 players were playing for 2 tennis players. But the tennis players have had the courts for years and why do they have to share with pickleball players? It is the skiers versus the snowboarders all over again.
What about other municipalities?
A Sarasota pickleball enthusiast can’t help but look at complexes such as Naples with envy with 54 pickleball courts in one location! It was a grass-roots effort by two women, Chris Evon and Terri Graham, co-founders of the Minto US Open Pickleball Championships. They had an idea and spoke to the right people and viola! Check out the video below to learn how Chris and Terri had a dream and made it possible.
Then there is the Pickleplex in Punta Gorda. Again, one person with an idea and makes it happen. His name is Ted Keregis, and with his connections and drive, he was able to have Florida Southwest University lease land for the complex. He and the Pickleplex Board received donations from private individuals, the City, and there has to be a big donor like Allegiant….that is just rumor. Kegeris expects the new complex to be a $6 million economic impact on the county.
Pickleplex just hit a snag with the coronavirus. Its estimated yearly operating budget is around 100k, and with tournaments and clinics cancelling they announced this summer that they would start to charge membership, even though they thought they never would. This fluttered a few feathers including the City that had donated 65k in the understanding that it would always be open to the public.
And to the east is the Pictona near Daytona. A mega complex that includes 24 pickleball courts, some covered, a clubhouse, and a restaurant. Rainer and Julie Martin, retired to Daytona and loved pickleball. They saw an underused park in Collier County and approached the county representatives with a dream and a plan. They also donated 3 million which became 4 million because plans do grow. Along with the Martin’s donation, Holly Hill, which is where the park is located, donated 1.5 million, and they received 1.5 million from an Echo Grant. The rest is history.
Visit Sarasota
I spoke to Shelby Connett, from Visit Sarasota, and asked her if she knew about the popularity of pickleball, and that I being Sarasota Pickleball, receive a lot of calls/emails from visitors who wish to vacation in Sarasota and play competitive pickleball. After I “dance” around the lack of organized outdoor play near places like Siesta Key with the callers, some end up going down south where they know they can find a good game. The economic impact of not having a large pickleball center in Sarasota is too massive to overlook.
If the Sarasota leaders and government officials think that a need for pickleball is being filled because the new housing developments are putting in pickleball courts, they are incorrect. Where are the vacationers going to play? The hotels, restaurants and other tourist entertainment spots will greatly benefit from Sarasota being a pickleball destination. It is the fastest growing sport! I speak to vacationers who tell me that they play pickleball in the morning and go to the beach in the afternoon. They also have to stay somewhere, they have to eat somewhere, they have to go to the Mote or Ringling Museum. Forward thinking, Sarasota can be a fantastic pickleball destination.
So what to do?
I can see from the other pickleball complexes, that it all begins with private donations. The Sarasota Pickleball Club which was started by Coach Russell (who has since relocated to North Carolina) now has a new board and they have been collecting funds towards someday having enough to approach the County with a plan. But if they or anyone plans on replicating a Pickleplex here, they will need a few individuals or a company with deep pockets to come up with substantial funds. Meanwhile, the funds that the Club has been collecting could go towards, let’s say, new lights at the Longwood Park pickleball courts. Right now there are no plans for lights.
In conclusion…
Let me add that I mean no disrespect to the Parks and Recs or City by writing this because they have done a wonderful job of providing pickleball for players in their facilities, and by painting lines on the tennis courts. Their staff has always been helpful and go out of there way to be of assistance, and therefore promote pickleball. Believe me, I know that they have other things to think of besides pickleball.
Also, the Our Y’s have just celebrated their 1 year anniversary and they too have gone out of their way to provide a place to play pickleball.
Another shout out to the McCarthy’s for sticking to their plans to build an indoor, private facility, and the other couple of guys I know that call me and are working on a dream and a plan.
To quote a movie….
If you build it, they will come.
Thanks for reading,
Pickleball Terry
