Coun.Catherine Pope pushes for pickleball court expansion

North Vancouver District Councilor Catherine Pope wants to expand pickleball courts in response to the growing interest in the sport.

“There are not enough pickleball courts to meet current and future demand in the District of North Vancouver,” Pope says in her report to the council, which will be discussed at a council meeting tonight.

“A pickleball hub is a group of dedicated pickleball courts. Pickleball is, by nature, very social, and players enjoy gathering in groups and playing lots of games with different partners and opponents. Pickleball hubs are relatively easy to build because 8 pickleball courts have a footprint comparable to that of 2 tennis courts,” she writes.

As suggested by the North Shore Pickleball Club, potential locations for pickleball parks include Murder Fraser Park (old Hydro station area), Kirkstone Park in Lynn Valley, Little Cates (two more courts could be added to the current playing area), Delbrook (Old lacrosse site south of the Community Centre), Mount Seymour Parkway (McCartney Creek Park), InterRiver Park, and the Maplewood and Seylynn areas.

Over the past three years, more than 2,000 North Shore students and their teachers have been introduced to pickleball, and local schools are now integrating pickleball into their curriculums and acquiring paddles for instruction, according to her report notes. Pickleball hubs can be found in Penticton, West Kelowna, Kelowna, Vernon, Cranbrook, Prince George, North Saanich, Delta, Terrace, and Christina Lake.

Pope noted in her report that pickleball hubs could create tournament opportunities and bring economic benefits. She also highlighted the exceptional physical and mental health benefits of racquet sports, particularly for older pickleball players who may be unable to engage in more physically demanding sports.

Last March 4, the Council approved the proposal to allocate $350,000 to construct four outdoor pickleball courts at Ambleside Park, as the Pickleball Advisory Roundtable.