Brentwood recreation staff announced that the town’s new pickleball facilities are open for public use and described plans for adult programs and a future youth offering.

The announcement matters because the courts are the most-used new recreation asset this spring and the department plans to test community demand before investing in an upgraded playing surface or expanded court footprint.

Recreation staff said the pickleball courts will remain open while the department supplies nets and ongoing program support. "The pickleball courts are officially opened. We have nets out there," recreation staff said. The department will run an adult Monday/Wednesday reservation program and said volunteers and local instructors will help run tournaments and classes.

Staff told the committee they still plan to buy wind guards and hoped to have them "by the end of the summer," but that the courts can open without them. The recreation office said it has equipment on hand and suggested providing a communal bucket of paddles and balls to encourage drop-in play.

On the court surface and long-term layout, recreation staff said an acrylic surface would be "kinder on the feet" and preferable for tennis players but that cost and competing projects mean there are currently "no concrete plans" to upgrade. "Let's just move forward. Let's open it up," staff said, adding the courts had been unusable for more than a year during road and tree work.

The department said it has three dedicated outdoor courts plus a pickleball layout painted on an existing basketball court. Committee members noted the basketball court space might allow future expansion; staff said previous site planning showed a fourth full-size court could be squeezed in but that the department chose to build three courts now and measure demand before spending more.

Staff emphasized that the program will be deliberately low-key at first: volunteers will help run the adult program and the department will monitor usage to design any youth offerings. "We're just trying to develop a program that's open to all. And then as we get the ball rolling, we'll then start having evidence that we can alter our programs as needed," staff said.

Less urgent details: staff expects to schedule volunteer-run tournaments and said training and reservation systems are in place. They asked committee members to help promote the courts to increase daytime use and weeknight youth practices.

Speakers quoted in this article are staff and Jason, a committee member, as identified in the meeting transcript.