Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Parks Signage topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Enumclaw council OKs temporary tennis-only sign at Rainier Trails Park amid pickleball dispute
Summary
After committee discussion and public complaints about noise and parking, the council voted to install a temporary sign encouraging tennis-only use at Rainier Trails Park and to direct players to nearby resurfaced courts. Council emphasized the sign is not codified and not enforceable as law.
The Enumclaw City Council voted May 26 to place a temporary sign at Rainier Trails Park encouraging tennis-only use and directing players to nearby Dwight Garrett courts, after a lengthy discussion about noise, parking and enforceability.
Councilmember Smith moved the measure; it was seconded and debated at length. Council members and residents said they had received recent complaints about noise, parking on Cole Street, and incidents of public urination near Rainier Trails. Council members urged caution about promising enforcement the city could not deliver; staff advised the sign would be an instructional, not regulatory, measure.
Winston Larson, the senior planner, and a Parks Department representative explained that the city has no current code that would make a sign enforceable and that any restriction would require a formal code change to provide enforceability. A staff member advising on law and policy said the city would not be legally required to do anything beyond standard noise-ordinance enforcement and normal code procedures if it placed a sign.
Councilmembers discussed alternatives including waiting to see whether recently resurfaced courts at Dwight Garrett would relieve demand, reimbursing pickleball groups for repainting lines if later restrictions required it, and using a temporary sign to test whether the change reduces conflicts. Several members favored wording that ‘welcomes’ people to alternate courts rather than a strict prohibition because the city lacks immediate enforcement authority.
After discussion, the council approved placing the temporary sign with verbiage encouraging tennis-only use and providing directions to Dwight Garrett Park. The council and staff said the sign is intended to be a low-cost, short-term, informational step; potential future policy or code changes were described as separate actions that would require additional process.
