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Council discusses converting tennis court to permanent pickleball courts after repeated full-capacity days
Summary
Councilmembers heard that pickleball courts reached full capacity on multiple days; a council proposal would reconfigure courts to add a permanent pickleball court pending donor approval and further council review at the July 17 meeting.
The Walker City Council discussed a request from the Walker Area Pickleball Club on July 7, 2025 to set up temporary pickleball courts on the city's tennis court and explored a longer-term reconfiguration to address demand. Administrator Hope Fairchild told the council she monitored the courts "for about 15 days over the last month" and observed "four days that all pickleball courts were full and a small number of people were waiting to play/watch." Councilmember Gary Wilkening said he met with club member Joe Arndt and described pickleball as a social sport that places players in close proximity.
Wilkening proposed a layout change that would convert the pickleball courts built in the late 2010s back to a tennis court while converting the remaining tennis court (installed in 2024) into a permanent pickleball court. He noted that making that change would add an additional pickleball court without requiring repainting or striping. Wilkening also said the city should seek approval from donor Dave Cochran, who donated the original pickleball courts.
Mayor Jerecho Worth noted that, if the tennis court were moved, it would be laid out east to west and that fencing would need to be heightened and the court repainted. The council agreed to bring the topic back to the July 17 City Council meeting for further consideration, leaving final decisions about donor approval, fence upgrades and any associated costs to that future discussion.
No formal vote was taken on court reconfiguration at the July 7 meeting; the council directed staff to follow up with the donor and prepare the item for the July 17 agenda.
