Camas Parks Commission nixes pickleball fixes

Interim parks director tells Commission he found few affordable noise-abatement options

By Kelly Moyer
December 19, 2024 10:40 am
Camas, Latest News, News

Camas residents Dawn Hendricks (left) and John Hendricks set up a pickleball net at the shared tennis-pickleball courts at Crown Park in Camas, Aug. 12, 2024. (Kelly Moyer/Post-Record files)

The Camas Parks and Recreation Commission has rejected a series of possible remedies that could have helped soothe neighborhood complaints about loud noises coming from the shared-use tennis-pickleball courts at Crown Park.

At the Commission’s Dec. 5 meeting, Camas Communications Director Bryan Rachal — who has been acting as the City’s interim parks director since former director Trang Lam took a new position leading the Port of Camas-Washougal last summer — presented several pickleball noise-abatement possibilities to the Commission members.

Parks Commission Chairwoman Ellen Burton explained that Commission members had wanted to see the types of noise-abatement products available to the City after community members, including several Crown Park neighbors, complained about noises related to the park’s pickleball players.

“There were concerns (from some) of these neighbors about … the noise from the game itself. We wanted to look into some options, so that’s what we’re doing today,” Burton told Commission members at the start of their Dec. 5 meeting.

Rachal said he had not found any specific product that “would guarantee a specific decibel level,” but wanted to show Commission members a few of the remedies being deployed in other cities grappling with pickleball-related noise complaints.

The pickleball noise-mitigation options Rachal presented to the Commission included a glass wall that would replace the existing fence around the tennis-pickleball courts, which would cost around $114,000; a screen product that would cost around $26,000 and go on the existing fence; two different types of “sound seal” panels that would cost between $60,000 and $77,000; other fence panels the City could install itself for a cost of around $26,000; shrubberies; and noise-dampening pickleball paddles and balls that would be far less expensive, but are mainly used as practice tools for experienced pickleball players, according to Rachal, and are not intended to be used during a game.

“None of these options (is) particularly cheap. The cheapest options are (around) $26,000, but when we’re talking about maintenance and the ability to take care of it, it’s a pretty big thing,” Rachal said, adding that there also remains the possibility that pickleball paddles and balls may soon be designed to be quieter and that City leaders could someday decide to create dedicated pickleball courts in a part of Camas that is not so close to residential neighbors. “My question to the Commission is: ‘Do we want to spend large amounts of money on something that may not be needed in a few years?’”

Earlier this year, Camas city leaders decided to nix a plan to stripe a new sports court inside Crown Park for pickleball, but said they would keep the shared tennis-pickleball courts that have existed for nearly three years.

That decision followed dozens of public comments from Crown Park neighbors about the noises coming from the Crown Park pickleball courts.

At their Dec. 5 meeting, the Parks Commission members agreed that they did not want to take any action on the noise-abatement products but would, instead, look at possible enforcement options for parking violations and loud-music complaints at Crown Park.

“I want to be sensitive to the needs of the neighborhood and we may (need to) look at the hours (pickleball players are allowed to use the courts) again,” Burton added. “But we know there’s a huge need for pickleball (courts). When we do our PROS (parks, recreation and open space) plan again, I know that will probably be a high priority for our community.”

Related Stories