Recommendation: That the Community Services Commission review and discuss proposed public pickleball court rules.

In the Spring of 2025, the City of La Habra is opening the new Vin Scully Centennial Park. Among the park’s many amenities are new pickleball courts, available to the public. Staff is developing a pickleball policy and would like input from the Community Services Commission.

According to the Association of Pickleball Professionals, the largest segment of adults playing pickleball is now 18-34 (58% of all players), a stark change from years past where seniors dominated the sport. Similarly, the average age of pickleball players now is 34.8, well below the generally accepted age for seniors (55+). The Los Angeles metropolitan area alone has approximately 4.7 million pickleball players, ranging from casual to competitive, making for a very large market to serve. 

The chart below is an overview of local cities that have public pickleball courts with their amenities and operations:
 

	Anaheim	Buena Park	Placentia	Tustin	Whittier
Indoor/Outdoor Facilities	Both	Indoor	Outdoor	Outdoor	Outdoor
Free Drop in Play	Yes	Yes, Age Limited	Yes	12-4PM only	Yes
Paid Reservations Available	Yes	No	No	Yes	No
Staff Supervision	Only for Indoor Facility	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Operating Hours	Dawn-Dusk	8AM-5PM Seniors only, 5PM -Dusk Open to Public	Dawn-9PM	7:00AM-10:00PM	Dawn-9PM
Membership Program Required	Only for Tennis Center, not Pickleball	No	No	No	No
Rules Regarding Time Limits for Group Play	No	No	Yes, 30 minutes per group	No	Yes, 30 min for singles 60 for doubles
Rules on Pick-Up Play	No	No	Yes, winners stay up to 30 min	No	No

 The proposed pickleball rules are consistent with other Cities:

• Hours of operation: 7 a.m. - 9 p.m.
• Reservations are not permitted
• Courts are on a first come, first serve basis
• Groups are limited to 30 minutes of playing time if there are other groups waiting. If there are no others waiting, groups may play indefinitely.
• Groups are required to leave the court once playing time has concluded
• Only City-approved contract instructors may use the courts for instruction
• Courts are to be used for pickleball only. No other activities are allowed on the courts
• Be courteous and considerate to fellow players and park users
• No food on the courts
• Participants are expected to follow the posted rules

 

There is no impact to the General Fund on this item.

General Plan Relevance:
Goal CI 5.1 Programs for Youth
Goal CI 5.2 Programs for Families

City Council Goals and Objectives:
Goal 3.B Maintain and upgrade City buildings, facilities, and parks
Goal 7.C Provide and maintain quality public services