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Lago Vista advisory board discusses pickleball safety net, court lights after resident complaints
Summary
The advisory board discussed sagging safety nets at the pickleball courts, ways to change tee geometry to reduce stray golf balls entering courts, and neighbors' complaints about lights that remain on overnight. Staff outlined short-term fixes and estimated rewiring costs of about $4,000'$5,000 to restore timer control.
The Lago Vista Parks & Recreation Advisory Board discussed safety problems at the community pickleball courts and complaints from nearby residents about lights staying on overnight during its monthly meeting.
Katie, city parks staff, told the board workers had reinstalled nets that were not tight and that a bucket truck from public works would be required to raise or tension the tall nets. "It's high when you have to have a bucket truck, and we don't have a bucket truck in this department," Katie said.
Board members described near-misses from stray golf balls. "It scares the hell out of you," said an advisory board member who had witnessed a ball enter a court. Members suggested low-cost fixes that would alter court geometry: moving the tee boxes down one tier, which would lower the hitting angle and reduce the number of balls crossing into the courts. "If you just move the t's down 1 level that's saving you $20," Andrew Gail said.
Andrew Gail also gave a preliminary cost estimate for more extensive court work, saying, "If I was guessing it'd be like $23 mark." The board did not clarify whether that figure was in hundreds, thousands, or another unit; the estimate was not documented beyond the meeting remark.
Neighbors raised complaints about lights that are perceived as being on all night. Katie said returning lights to a manual timer would require rewiring and conduit along a brick wall and installation of new poles. She estimated installation costs "closer to 4 or 5" and later repeated "4 or 5000." Katie said the lights are currently set to remain on until 10 p.m. because scheduled reservations sometimes run late and staff must keep them lit to allow people to leave safely.
Board members directed staff to pursue immediate, low-cost safety measures (retensioning nets and moving tees where feasible) and to collect more precise cost estimates to present for budgeting. The board agreed to meet on-site next week with maintenance staff to test small fixes before seeking capital funding.
The discussion did not result in a formal motion or vote on procurement or capital expenditure. The board said it will bring a short list of options and firm estimates to a future meeting so council or budget staff can consider funding.
