Pickleball Complex
Pickleball Complex
Recognizing the tremendous local growth in pickleball, the City of Asheville plans to construct a pickleball complex with 8-10 courts dedicated to the sport with access to supporting facilities such as parking, restrooms, and lights.
Sarasota's Pompano Trailhead pickleball complex features 12 dedicated courts within a larger park. This image is an illustration and may not reflect Asheville's pickleball complex.
Happening Now
Asheville Parks & Recreation (APR) is evaluating potential locations for this priority community investment project and issued a Request for Qulifications (RFQ) for planing, design, and construction administration.
Asheville voters overwhelmingly approved a general obligation (GO) bond referendum in November allocating up to $20 million for parks and recreation improvements throughout the city including a new pickleball complex. Dedicated pickleball courts were identified as priorities in the Recreate Asheville 10-Year Plan.
Background
Pickleball's surge in popularity has grown significantly in Asheville, leading to prioritization for dedicated courts. Here's a breakdown of the key factors:
- Health and Social Benefits: Pickleball is recognized as a sport that promotes physical activity and social interaction, aligning with APR's mission to enhance community well-being.
- Rapid Growth in Popularity: Asheville has experienced a significant increase in pickleball participation across all age groups. All public tennis courts in the city are dual-lined for pickleball with a shared use schedule in place.
- Strain on Existing Facilities: Existing public courts have become overcrowded with a much higher demand for court space than is currently available making it difficult to meet the needs of multiple activities.
- Community Demand: The local pickleball community has actively advocated for dedicated pickleball facilities. This demonstrates a strong community desire for the sport.
Opportunities for Input
The community engagement phase for the pickleball complex is expected to start later this year. For more on construction project flow, check out this article.
Useful Links
Frequently Asked Questions
Multiple sites are under consideration and with all the variables involved we aren’t far enough along to share potential sites publicly. APR’s goal is to quickly narrow down the options and involve the community for feedback, allowing the chosen design team to get to work as soon as possible.
A precise timeline isn’t set yet. However, once the design team is on board, they'll help develop a projected schedule for work. We encourage interested community members to keep an eye on this project page and sign up for email updates to stay informed as plans develop.
Yes! We can't wait to collaborate on the best pickleball complex for our city. Keep an eye on this page and sign up for email updates to stay informed as opportunities are announced.
Imagine you need to hire someone to design your new home. You wouldn't just pick the first person you see, right? You want to talk to a few different designers to get a feel for who is the best fit and most highly qualified. That's kind of what a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) process is like, but for community investments our city needs. This is how the RFQ process shapes up:
Post a "Help Wanted" Sign (Post the RFQ): The City of Asheville puts out a public announcement for design services – like a "Help Wanted" sign, but called a Request for Qualifications (RFQ). This document lets companies know what kind of project our community needs help with and asks interested companies to submit their experience, qualifications, and how they might approach the project. The RFQ for the pickleball complex was posted on July 2.
Read Applications (Evaluate Responses): After the closing date for RFQ responses, the evaluation team carefully reads through all responses, looking at things like how much experience each company has designing similar proejcts and if they seem to understand what our community needs.
Pick the Best Candidate (Choose the Best Response): Based on qualifications and experience, the City of Asheville narrows the list to the most qualified design company after meetings and discussions. It's similar to picking the most promising candidate for a job.
Discuss Details (Negotiate a Contract): City staff meets with the top design firm to talk about specific details of the project. Negotiation of items such as which elements of the design process will be used, design and construction timeline, and how much design will cost take place. This is like negotiating salary and job responsibilities with a job candidate. The goal is to come to a mutual agreement on all the details, which are written into a contract.
Get the Final Okay (Go to City Council for Approval): City Council reviews a staff report that is avaliable to the community on the City of Asheville's website the week before their meeting to make sure everything looks good for our community and that taxpayer money is being used appropriately. If they agree with the staff report, a resolution is signed, allowing the contract to move forward to obtain required signatures. Finally, the team can officially start work on design for the project.
Contact Information
Pete Wall, Assistant Director
Asheville Parks & Recreation
(828) 259-5800