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Pickleball club urges resurfacing; council asks for estimates for Schuster and Ray Eklund sites
Summary
Residents and parks staff urged resurfacing aging courts at Schuster Park and discussed building new courts at Ray Eklund (three courts on a former skate-park slab). Estimates ranged from $10,000–$20,000 per court for resurfacing; council asked staff to obtain bids and include repainting estimates as a near-term option.
Residents and parks staff pressed the Crookston City Council for a plan to maintain and expand local pickleball facilities, with club leaders urging resurfacing at Schuster Park and parks staff proposing three new courts at Ray Eklund using an existing concrete slab.
Shirley Iverson, who identified herself and her address, told the council she had worked with Scott on organizing the club, fundraising and tournament planning and recommended either resurfacing Schuster or converting Eklund’s old skate-park slab into three courts with parking and permanent bathrooms. She said resurfacing cycles in neighboring towns run closer to five years and that Schuster is now about year eight since construction.
Parks staff (Scott) said resurfacing costs depend on condition but quoted a ballpark $10,000–$20,000 per court; preparing the Eklund skate‑park slab for three courts and surfacing was discussed in the range that could be roughly $15,000 per court when accounting for grinding and resurfacing. Council members raised maintenance and budget concerns and asked staff to provide formal cost estimates for both options and an interim repainting estimate for the tennis courts used as a stopgap.
Why it matters: pickleball is growing locally; choices about resurfacing versus new construction affect neighborhoods, maintenance budgets, lighting and tournament capacity.
What’s next: Parks staff will obtain vendor estimates for resurfacing Schuster, for converting the Eklund skate-park slab into a three-court facility, and for repainting tennis courts as a short-term measure; council indicated willingness to consider the options during the budget cycle.
