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Residents Press Parks Department Over Yearslong Delays to New Tennis and Pickleball Courts
Summary
Tennis and pickleball players told the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board that promised courts have been repeatedly delayed, urging staff to speed procurement and provide a clear timeline; staff cited procurement rules, annexation steps and wetland monitoring as causes and said 12 dedicated pickleball courts at Tom Watson will open this fall.
Tennis and pickleball players urged the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board on Tuesday to move faster after years of deferred projects and missed openings for courts at East Boulder and other sites.
"We have been deceived and promises have been broken," Don Bergl, president of the Boulder Tennis Association, told the board, pressing for "urgency and accountability" on the East Boulder racquet court project.
Players, coaches and community organizers described a pattern of staffing and schedule changes that left tournaments and regular play displaced. "We currently have zero dedicated pickleball courts in Boulder," Zach Majorca, president of BOCO Pickleball, said, urging staff to "decouple" the pickleball work from the larger East Boulder project so resurfacing and conversion could happen sooner.
Staff acknowledged the depth of frustration and outlined the constraints behind schedule changes. Ali Rhodes, director of Parks and Recreation, said procurement rules require full competitive processes in most cases, and exemptions (emergency or sole-source) can be used only in narrow, legally justified circumstances. Rhodes said staff attempted a sole-source approach but were directed by purchasing to go to an RFP.
Project-specific updates given to the board included:
- Tom Watson Park: Jake Minden, project manager, said phase 1 will deliver 12 dedicated, lighted pickleball courts plus shade structures and support amenities; permitting and technical review are underway and staff estimate a 4–5 month construction window with a grand opening planned this fall.
- East Boulder Community Park / Hogan Pankaus annexation: staff reported that city council unanimously approved annexation on Feb. 19, enabling development of eight new tennis courts on the annexed parcel. However, staff said required wetland monitoring and revised site-review and permitting steps have added approximately six to eight months to the timeline, pushing main construction into 2027.
Staff said they will continue to search for project efficiencies and to coordinate with Planning and Development Services to refine permitting and design phases. "We hear the frustration," Rhodes told the room. "We will review the timeline, plan carefully and report back."
Board members pressed staff on interim amenities and maintenance. Staff said they are evaluating temporary restroom options and additional porta-potties for Tom Watson when the courts open this fall, and said resurfacing or temporary repairs for aging South Boulder courts will be pursued with an identified funding path.
The board did not take a formal vote on the court timelines at the meeting; staff pledged to return with a more detailed schedule and funding updates in coming weeks.
