As Ridgefield anticipates a 30% population growth over the next decade, Parks Manager Corey Crownhart expects Washington’s official sport, pickleball, to rise in demand.
During a presentation to the Ridgefield Parks Board on Wednesday, Sept. 11, Crownhart outlined planning and implementation considerations for expanding pickleball in the city, although the noise generated by pickleball may make the facilities difficult to implement in certain areas.
Crownhart cited data from Clark County that showed a 40% increase in demand for the sport over the past five years. Despite that, few pickleball opportunities are available in Ridgefield. Currently, Ridgefield offers two indoor pickleball courts at the Ridgefield Administrative and Civic Services Center. However, these courts are not dedicated exclusively to pickleball.
Crownhart pointed out that noise is a major factor in determining suitable outdoor locations. The sport generates between 60 and 70 decibels from a distance of 30 to 50 feet, which could disturb nearby residents.
“Some would compare it to Tick-Tock, the crocodile from Peter Pan,” Crownhart said. “… While it is not necessarily going to cause any physical harm, it could be quite annoying for those who are near it, which is one reason why many municipalities have been seeing a lot of local residents … raise issues with pickleball courts being placed close to their homes. That’s one thing that we’ll need to consider.”
One solution Crownhart proposed is creating “dual-purpose facilities,” far from residential areas. This would involve updating existing city-owned properties to accommodate pickleball, as long as adequate parking is available. He pointed to Seattle as an example, where pickleball courts share space with a water tower. As Ridgefield reviews its water retention and utility management properties, shared-use spaces could become a possibility.
“There’s plenty of opportunities for us to find ways to have… pickleball courts added to these properties,” Crownhart said.
The Parks Board expressed support for this approach. Board member Beth Bicknell advocated for the use of dual-purpose facilities.
“I would hope we could have pickleball, as much as possible, not go toward natural areas, to avoid residential and go more toward areas that already have the noise, and do more of that dual-purpose, more industrial use potentially,” Bicknell said.
Board member Sandy Schill supports focusing on the east side of the freeway, where more industrial areas are located. She expressed that the implementation of pickleball may clash with west Ridgefield’s balance between development and nature.
“One of the great things [the City Council] has done is [that] just about all development in [west] Ridgefield is near nature,” Schill said. “... The City of Ridgefield has done a really good job of making all our developments [keep] nature within … or around their developments.”
