ACTION ALERT:
Tell Seattle Parks:
Equal Participation Deserves Equal Access
Seattle pickleball friends, I need your help with something I’ve been working on.
David Middaugh and I spent a long time looking at how Seattle Parks allocates outdoor courts, and the numbers bothered us. Even though the tennis and pickleball communities are roughly the same size, the city provides about 112 courts’ worth of effective capacity for tennis and just 44.5 for pickleball.
We all know the city isn’t about to fund a wave of new courts, and anything built from scratch takes years. So, we wrote a location-by-location plan to reach a 50–50 split (90 courts each) within months, mostly by designating the 83 courts that are already dual-lined, plus nets, high-visibility yellow lines, noise-abatement where neighbors are affected, and some relining at Solstice Park. What I most want you to know is that this doesn’t require new construction.
I want to be clear about what this is and isn’t. Tennis keeps 90 dedicated courts. Every current high school commitment is honored. We even return Magnolia’s south courts to tennis-only because of neighbor noise concerns. This isn’t about taking something away from anyone. It’s about the city matching its courts to how Seattleites actually play.
The plan also leaves room for about 30 more pickleball courts as the sport keeps growing.
If you agree, please sign the petition asking Seattle Parks and Recreation to adopt the plan and implement it this year. It takes about 30 seconds.
The full plan is here if you want to check our work (please do, and tell me if you spot something we missed):
And please share this with your regular crew. We’re only at the start, and every signature helps show the city that players want this.
Thank you!
Miguel
P.S.: Happy to answer questions about the plan, including how it handles specific courts near you. Just ask!
Josh Kerns on Seattle Parks' Racquet Sports Strategy
If your browser blocks this video, visit https://www.facebook.com/reel/742907282200789 to watch it.
How USTA is Squashing Pickleball
and How Seattle Parks Fell Prey to its Tactics
The Podcast
Here is something to discuss when you are waiting for your next pickleball game on Seattle's public courts.
Get your eyes on the evidence by reading all the juicy details.
The United States Tennis Association (USTA) Helped Select Which Seattle Courts Would Be Resurfaced in 2024 and Beyond
Do you ever wonder why so many of the tennis courts with pickleball lines are in such bad shape and why so few of them get resurfaced every year?
Seattle Parks has a single budget item that covers the maintenance and resurfacing of public outdoor tennis and pickleball courts.
How would you fairly allocate this budget between the two sports?
In September 2023, Seattle Parks let the United States Tennis Association guide the selection of courts to be resurfaced in future years.
In 2024, all the tennis courts that were resurfaced were tennis-only courts. No tennis courts with pickleball lines were resurfaced.
UPDATE:
In 2025, we expect the two dual-lined Mount Baker tennis courts to be resurfaced.
All other resurfaced courts should once again be tennis-only.
In 2025 again, all the tennis courts that were resurfaced were tennis-only courts. No tennis courts with pickleball lines were resurfaced.
What are you going to do about it?
Tennis vs. pickleball winter court usage
A one-minute video is worth a thousand words.
Did you notice there are people waiting to play on the side of the pickleball courts?
Playtime Scheduler Update
A PlayTime Scheduler app is now available for your phone.
Time for pickleball only tells you where and when regular drop‑in pickleball games are happening. To organize or join one-off games, join Playtime Scheduler's "Seattle Metro" region. It is free.
You will be in good company since more than
4,000
6,000
9,000
players have already joined this region.
Recent Schedule Changes
- The Mercer Island Community and Events Center has a new pickleball schedule for the fall. (Thank you, Conrad!)
- The South Bellevue Community Center has started its fall schedule.
- The calendar has been updated to reflect Seattle's community centers fall schedule.
- New: Beginner Pickleball Social on Sundays from 9am to noon at the Green Lake East Pickleball Courts.
- Pickleball at Bellevue's Hidden Valley Filedhouse will end on Wednesday, June 17 for the summer.
- Monday and Wednesday pickleball at Shoreline Park starts at 9:00am. (Thank you, Dorrena!)
- The calendar has been updated to reflect the Queen Anne Community Center pickleball schedule as reported by the players. (Thank you, Kerry!)
- The Auburn Community Center will stop hosting drop-in pickleball for the rest of the summer on June 18.
- The International School in Bellevue has resumed hosting drop-in pickleball. Please respect the posted hours on their calendar and do not show up outside of those hours.
See something? Say something!
Many thanks to all the players and staff members who let us know about schedule changes.Please email schedule change information to info@timeforpickleball.com.
Disclaimer
Since most facilities state that "programs, hours, and fees are subject to change without notice", the information included here cannot be guaranteed to be accurate. Call play locations within 48 hours of play to verify daily schedule.Weather Forecast
Calendar
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