Will Bill Barber Rink show court lines this summer?
The Callander Pickleball club is growing strong and are looking for some more court space. Dave Cross, representing the club, requested that council consider allowing the club to paint court lines on the Bill Barber Rink’s concrete pad.
“We have a great problem in Callander and area,” Cross said, “we have too many people that want to play pickleball, and not enough courts to play on.”
Currently, local pickleballers convene at the Callander Community Centre. They have two indoor courts there, and two groups of players come in twice a week. The facility is “totally full with players,” Cross emphasized, with a “number of players on a waiting list.”
See: Callander pickleballers, your sport calls on you to serve
No outdoor courts are available yet for this summer’s games, Cross noted, but the club wants to change that, by painting lines on the new concrete pad at the Bill Barber Rink.
The roof would be a boon for the players, Cross said. The shady environs would cool the players and keep the pickleball action hot. Rain? Under the Bill Barber’s protective canopy, the players would be indifferent to the weather.
See: Callander boarding in the Bill Barber Rink
Cross detailed how the club estimates the rink could accommodate five or six courts. This amount should be enough “to keep up with the demands” of the sport. An official pickleball court is 44 by 20 feet.
The club also requested the town purchase nets for those courts. Nets average around $250 but can climb into the $600 range for more elaborate systems.
Net prices aside, councillor Grant McMartin expressed concern about “drilling holes in the new concrete” to install those nets. Could be costly.
“It’s a free-standing net,” Cross reassured. “There are two different types we can get, one with wheels or one on stands.”
Mayor Robb Noon noted that he wants to encourage “community involvement within the municipality.” The next step is to have staff prepare a more detailed report on the project, complete with pricing and timelines for the work. The report will also provide information “on how the lines could affect other rentals” of the Bill Barber Rink.
Council agreed. The pickleball request will be served again to councillors at an upcoming meeting.
David Briggs is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of BayToday, a publication of Village Media. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
