What’s that you say – ‘pickleball’? Oak Ridge Town Park allocates space for pickleball – in a parking lot, at least temporarily by CHRIS BURRITT OAK RIDGE – The fast-growing game of pickleball is coming to Oak Ridge, slowly. One morning early last month, Oak Ridge resident Laura Peoples, her sister Susan Phillips and their friend Lynda Drewing christened the new pickleball court in the Town Park parking lot on Lisa Drive. “Come join us,” Peoples called out to a walker passing by, trying to add a fourth player to the paddle-and-ball game, akin to tennis, ping pong and badminton. Oak Ridge’s parks and recreation staff marked off the boundaries for
the court. They’re blocking motorists’ access to the section of the parking lot from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. That’s when the area is reserved for pickleball.
Photo by Chris Burritt/NWO
Playing pickleball requires a paddle and perforated plastic ball that players hit back and forth over a net, like tennis.
Parks and Recreation Director Terry Lannon described the effort as “a dry run” to gauge Oak Ridge residents’ interest in playing the game. If its popularity proves strong, tennis courts proposed for Heritage Farm Park may accommodate pickleball, Lannon said. Peoples could hardly wait to play in the parking lot. In February, she pitched the idea to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, which by unanimous vote approved the parking lot arrangements on a temporary basis. Lannon scheduled playing times to avoid late afternoons, evenings and weekends when the parking lot is crowded during sporting activities.
recreation board with their idea.
Peoples started playing pickleball with her sister and family at Bur-Mil Park last summer. As they embraced the sport, she said they thought it would be great to play closer to home, so she approached the Oak Ridge parks and
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Before getting their pickleball game underway, players set up a net in the parking lot, where they contend with the wind affecting the flight of a perforated plastic ball and the inconvenience of chasing errant shots across the asphalt. Even so, Peoples said, designating the Town Park parking lot for a pickleball court is “a first step” for Oak Ridge. “We’re headed in the right direction,” she said. Peoples expressed her appreciation
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