Community-funded 10-court pickleball complex celebrated in Hermiston

Hermiston officials and volunteers celebrated the opening of a privately funded 10-court pickleball complex, showcasing a short video and inviting the construction committee to the dais.

The presentation said the Greater Hermiston Community Foundation acted as the project's fiscal agent and that the courts were built largely with donated labor, equipment and materials. "This place wasn't built by a corporation or a government mandate," the video narrator said, crediting neighbors and volunteers for driving the project. Organizer remarks at the meeting noted the facility sits near the Theater Sports Complex and was chosen to balance accessibility and neighborhood impacts.

Director (staff member) said the city's Placer AI counts showed 12,400 visits to the complex since the June 14 opening, with a weekly average close to 670 and many evenings active until about 10 p.m. Committee members and councilors praised the project for its social and health benefits and for including an accessible court for players with limited mobility. "We have so much community involvement," a committee member said, thanking businesses, foundations and volunteer tradespeople.

Theresa Penalosa and other speakers at the meeting said the project reflected a local preference to raise private funds for recreation rather than use general tax revenue. Councilors who spoke described the courts as a durable community asset and thanked the volunteers for the two-year effort that produced the facility.

The council did not take formal action on the presentation; the committee was publicly thanked and encouraged to continue completing punch-list items for the site.