With the increased popularity of pickleball, many Lochmere residents have requested pickleball courts in our community. In response, the Board had the two tennis courts at Highlands painted with pickleball dimensions in 2014 while retaining the ability to play tennis. As demand increased, pickleball players requested courts dedicated to pickleball only.
Unfortunately, there is no suitable location to build new courts nor is there money in the budget for that level of construction. To provide dedicated pickleball courts we would need to repurpose existing tennis courts at either Highlands or Lochwood. By converting two tennis courts we could create 6 dedicated pickleball courts.
Two surveys were sent to the membership in 2020 and 2021 to determine which location would best serve Lochmere.The results of the surveys are included below.
November 2020 Survey
Do You Play Pickleball?
| Response | Count |
| No | 166 |
| Yes | 191 |
| Grand Total | 357 |
How Often Do You Play Pickleball?
| Response | Count |
| I Haven’t Played At Lochmere | 43 |
| Less Than 2 Times A Week | 48 |
| More Than 2 Times A Week | 100 |
| Grand Total | 191 |
Are The Marked Pickleball Lines At Highlands Tennis Courts Enough For Your Needs?
| Response | Count |
| No | 158 |
| Yes | 199 |
| Grand Total | 357 |
Would You Be Open To The Possibility Of Converting The Highlands Tennis Courts To Just Pickleball?
| Response | Count |
| No | 154 |
| Yes | 203 |
| Grand Total | 357 |
January 2021 Pickleball Survey
| Summary of Responses | ||
| Number of Completed SurveyResponses | 217 | |
| What do you play atLochmere | ||
| Tennis | 88 | 40.6% |
| Pickleball | 39 | 18.0% |
| Both | 50 | 23.0% |
| Neither | 40 | 18.4% |
| Highlands | ||
| Leave as is | 95 | 43.8% |
| Convert one court to pickleball(allows for two courts of pickleball play) | 39 | 18.0% |
| Convert both courts to pickleball only(allows for six courts of pickleball play) | 61 | 28.1% |
| Provide moveable pickleball nets to be used on pickleball-marked courts only | 22 | 10.1% |
| Lochwood | ||
| Leave as tennis only. | 74 | 34.1% |
| Mark pickleball lines on two courts. | 48 | 22.1% |
| Provide moveable pickleball nets to be used on pickleball-marked courts only | 14 | 6.5% |
| Convert one court to pickleball(allows for three courts of pickleball play if square fence) | 45 | 20.7% |
| Convert two courts to pickleball(allows for six courts of pickleball play if square fence) | 36 | 16.6% |
A number of residents concerned that both Highlands courts were being seriously considered for conversion started a petition in which 222 responses were received against converting both courts.
The Board received quotes to repurpose two tennis courts at Highlands or Lochwood. If pickleball courts are placed at Highlands, there will no longer be tennis courts available there. If placed at Lochwood, courts 3 and 4 will be converted to pickleball. The quote amounts are included below. The quote to repurpose Highlands is more, due to the need to increase the size of the footprint, fencing, repairs and resurfacing.
- Convert two (2) tennis courts to six (6) pickleball courts at Highlands: $71,362
- Convert two (2) tennis courts to six (6) pickleball courts at Lochwood: $33,631
Pros and Cons of Each Option:
HIGHLANDS (convert both tennis courts to pickleball courts):
PROS
- The current location of marked Pickleball courts in Lochmere
- The ability to create a dedicated Pickleball Center (no tennis)
CONS
- Additional cost to convert
- No bathrooms
- Less access to staff for lessons
- No tennis courts at Highlands
LOCHWOOD (convert courts 3 and 4 to pickleball courts):
PROS
- Reduced cost to convert
- Retains tennis courts at Highlands
- Year-round bathrooms
- Proximity of staff for lessons
CONS
- Reduces the number of usable tennis courts to 4 (courts 5 – 8); tennis staff reserves courts 1 and 2 until 8:00pm
- No longer a dedicated tennis center; additional noise associated with pickleball
- Less court availability during peak times and league play
As you can see, there is no easy solution to this conundrum to provide pickleball courts in Lochmere.
We welcome constructive feedback by sending your comments to [removed].
Respectfully,
Lochmere Board of Directors