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St. Albert pickleballers seek city support for championship facility

Alberta’s second-largest club puts up $200K toward outdoor 35-court complex
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Members of the St. Albert Pickleball Club packed the public gallery in council chambers at St. Albert Place Tuesday, Oct. 15, as their president, Eileen McClean told city council their 1,055 members want to build a new outdoor complex with as many as 35 courts that could host provincial and national tournaments. Provided photo

The public gallery in council chambers at St. Albert Place was packed at 1 p.m. Tuesday.

With the exception of half a dozen souls, these people were here to see St. Albert Pickleball Club president Eileen McClean present their grand vision to city council.

The club, Alberta’s second-largest with 1,055 members, has ambition. They’re willing to apply for grants, fundraise and put up $200,000 from their own capital reserve toward the creation of a new, one-site outdoor pickleball complex with as many as 35 courts, enough to host provincial and national championship tournaments.

The only context for cost provided was Sherwood Park’s construction of a 20-court facility for $2.3 million.

Currently the club has outdoor courts at Alpine and Larose and has access to six school gyms in the evenings through the city’s reciprocal use agreement with school boards. All 12 courts at Alpine are in good shape, one of the six courts at Larose is out of commission with a hole in the surface.

But none of these places could host a national tournament. McClean said provincial tournaments draw 500 to 600 participants, and nationals closer to 800. All of the matches have to be on one site for logistical reasons, she said.

The club’s facilities committee has been going up and down the city’s highways and byways looking at every patch of land up for sale. Staying away from residential areas is a concern since the game can be noisy for neighbours; many new courts in other cities have been materializing in commercial and industrial areas.

One possibility the club has started to look into would see as many as 35 courts built on the site of the rugby field atop a former waste storage site in the Riel recreation area. This would require much more conversation with the pickleball club, the rugby club and the city, and an environmental assessment given the former use of the site.

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Pickleball participants celebrate the opening of the Alpine Park court in August 2018. CHRIS COLBOURNE/St. Albert Gazette

Economies of scale

McClean said pickleball is all about “land-use efficiency” and economies of scale, for that matter. One soccer field, which typically would host 22 players, is enough room for 32 courts with 128 players of all ages paddling around.

With usage increasing at a steady 20 per cent per year, the number of players looking for a place to play is doubling about every three or four years.

The sport isn’t just for seniors, though part of its appeal is as a lower-impact version of tennis. The club coaches 70 youth members every Friday and offers free lessons to the public on Sundays. The events are jammed without a penny spent on advertising. They've even partnered with Special Olympics for the last two years.

“It’s all word-of-mouth,” McClean said.

Courts are popping up all over the region, the province and the country. Medicine Hat has 20 courts, Spruce Grove has 21 courts opening late next year, and the Okotoks club is working toward building 24 new courts ready for use in 2026. Red Deer is adding another 10 courts to its existing facility, McClean said.

Other municipalities are ahead of the curve and “we need to get onboard now.

“We build now for the future,” she said. “If we build 20 now, in five years we’ll need 20 more, so we hope to get 30 to 35 now.”

Mayor Cathy Heron recalled talking about pickleball as it emerged in the city in around 2010-11. The club was founded in 2014.

“I’ve been watching this journey and it’s been amazing,” she said. “I love the idea of hosting provincials here.”

Coun. Ken MacKay asked whether the club has looked at partnering with a private company. In her State of the City address in September, Heron announced that a new indoor sport facility in the Anthony Henday Business Park would include 20 pickleball courts.

McClean said she understands the company has to pay the electric bills, but described the cost of court time at that facility as “top premium dollar."

“We’re focused on outdoor courts right now.”

Danielle Podlubny, the city’s director of recreation and parks, said aquatics is the city’s top recreational priority, with pickleball recognized as a medium- to high-priority activity in terms of planning new facilities.

She said pickleball has been considered in terms of a recreational pastime, not in terms of the larger-scale competitive facilities McClean’s membership is mulling.

She added the rugby field proposal lives only in the most preliminary terms, having come up for the first time in a meeting between the club and the city a couple of weeks ago.

“A lot of work would need to happen to discuss that as an option.”

City council accepted McClean’s report as information. The gallery emptied.

“I hope you didn’t expect us to pass a motion today giving you $2.3 million,” Heron joked with the crowd as they exited. “But thanks all for coming out. There’s always options and opportunity for us out there. We just have to work it out.”




Craig Gilbert

About the Author: Craig Gilbert

Craig is a thoroughly ink-stained award-winning writer and photographer originally from Northern Ontario. Please don’t hold that against him.
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