It’s not Christmas yet, but local pickleball players are getting something on their wish list – eight new courts.
Parks and Recreation Director Seth Adams came before the Board of Commissioners on Nov. 8 to present a plan to build new pickleball courts at the Macon County Recreation Park. Prior to taking the recommendation to the Parks and Recreation Commission, Adams met with the local pickleball club and officials from Little League girls softball, which uses the field near where the courts will be built. The Parks and Recreation Commission gave their OK on the plan presented to the county commissioners.
“Pickleball is the fastest growing recreational sport in the country,” Adams said. It is estimated 4.8 million people play, and that’s just people who are part of organized clubs, there are more who play on their own that would not be included in that number.
“We get numerous calls day in and day out from people wanting to get into pickleball, so it is definitely growing in our area also,” Adams said.
According to George McClure, president of the Blue Ridge Mountains Pickleball Club, they have about 170 people on their email list. He said the number of regular players fluctuates since many people go to Florida in the winter, but there are usually about 50 active players in the group and there are others who play that are not part of the club. He thinks there may come a time that it becomes a competitive sport in schools.
“Everybody I’ve talked to that says they’re going to try it, they’re addicted to it now,” Adams said. “People that can’t play tennis have picked this up.”
While often thought of as a sport for older folks, Adams said in the last three years the average age of pickleball players has dropped from 41 to 38. He said they are seeing more interest from working-age people, but the problem they run into is having a space to play after they get off work in the evenings. Currently, the county’s pickleball courts are shared by other activities, and youth sports use the courts in the evenings.
There are three indoor pickleball courts at the Community Building on Georgia Road which are available for morning use a few days during the week, two shared courts below the swimming pool at the rec park, and four shared outdoor courts at Parker Meadows. The nets for the courts at Parker Meadows are stored in the maintenance building, so they can only be used during working hours. McClure said Rabun County has nine indoor courts and many people from Franklin play there in the evenings and on the weekends.
Adams said construction of dedicated pickleball courts will relieve some of the scheduling pressure and give pickleball players an opportunity to play in the evenings, especially since there is lighting at the park.
The new courts will be built next to the current girls’ softball field, below Wendy’s. Adams said that field was originally built for adult league and is larger than it needs to be for the girls practicing there. The field is used for practice and games are played at Parker Meadows. The field will be reduced in size and shifted to the left and the pickleball courts will be built on the right side.
Since the concession stand is no longer needed there, it will be converted to two ADA-compliant bathrooms in addition to the two bathrooms already on the site.
Adams said he is the process of getting price estimates for the project. The county allocated $155,000 in the budget for the construction of pickleball courts. He said it will be spring before the work can be completed since asphalt cannot be poured during the winter months.
“Building the new courts, which will be visible from Georgia Road near Ingles, is a great advertisement for the city,” said McClure. “There is evidence that some folks look for pickleball opportunities when they decide where to relocate or retire. This puts one more feather in the cap of Franklin as a great place to live.”
McClure says pickleball is generally described as a combination of tennis, badminton and ping pong. McClure previously played squash and sometimes racquetball. Upon retiring and moving to Franklin in 2018, he needed to find another sport to play. He tried badminton for a while and then someone suggested pickleball. “It’s quite addictive,” he said. “It’s very easy to learn.”
He said in addition to the physical activity, he appreciates the social cohesiveness and sense of community that develops among the players.
“We have men and women, policemen, pilots, lawyers, doctors, postmen, realtors, insurance agents, engineers, retirees and 30-year-olds, Republicans, Democrats, Greens, locals, transplants, and so on, and all these differences melt away on the courts. In such a polarized time, pickleball is a badly needed social glue,” he said.
The local pickleball club credits Jan Sharp with introducing the sport to Franklin in 2010. “She had picked it up in Fort Myers, Florida, where she spent winters. She had been a rabid tennis player, but knees, etc. sort of put a damper on it for her,” said Nancy Falkenstein of the Blue Ridge Mountains Pickleball Club. Pickleball courts are smaller than tennis courts, and while the sport is still competitive it can be easier for folks to play.
What started as a group of 8-10 players quickly grew to 20. “After a couple of years, we had 50 folks on our roster with some of them seasonal,” said Falkenstein. “Pickleball was played in Senior Games when it was obvious this was a great sport. We had players come from Hiwassee and Hayesville regularly until their own program got started.”
“The BRMP Club quickly developed a reputation for being welcoming to all players at all levels – one that we proudly have today,” she said.