BUSINESS

Chandler gets state’s first indoor pickleball complex

ARIZONAN NEWS STAFF

Arizona’s first indoor pickleball facility – and the largest of its kind in the nation – has opened in Chandler. The 15-court Pickleball on the northeast corner of Ray and Rural roads is open for play and tours 6 a.m.-midnight daily, offering not only an air-conditioned, wind-free playground for participants in one of America’s fastestgrowing sports but also opportunities for corporate events, birthday and anniversary parties and the prospect of tournaments. Owner and Chandler pickleballer Mike Rodriguez is beaming over the realization of a dream that began when he and some buddies were standing in a windy court outside in January 2021. “For the serious and advanced player, the elements have to go,” said Rodrigues, who retrofitted the strip mall’s anchor – a Gold’s Gym. “I never thought of Arizona as windy until I started playing pickleball,” he explained. “Since it is a whiffle ball, the slightest amount of breeze can carry what would have been a great cut shot and land it 2 inches out of bounds. Playing indoors will take all the extraneous elements out so that the only thing that affects your game – is your game. And that’s what the best players want, to let their game stand on its own.” “Pickleball is the fastest growing sport in America because it’s fun,” he added. “What’s not fun is waiting for a court, playing in the heat, and having the wind affect your game. We’ve solved all those problems.” The National Pickleball Association saw its membership increase by 650 percent between 2013 and 2019. The Sports & Fitness Industry Association, which tracks the popularity of sports through the sale of related merchandise, estimated that from 2018 to the end of last year, the number of active pickleball players has grown from 3.1 million to 4.2 million. That growth included a 21.3 percent increase last year over 2019 as the pandemic forced Americans to rethink social distancing and the value of socializing outdoors, the Sports & Fitness Industry Association said. Municipalities can’t keep up with the demand for more free places to play and have spent millions of dollars over the last five years to try and feed the voracious appetite for courts. At Pickleball Kingdom, specialized AC ducts eliminate the heat and wind of outdoor courts. The facility’s specific lighting illuminates the courts without the negative effects of the sun on the game and on players, he noted. Pickleball Kingdom also offers a free app that allows players to reserve a court, eliminating the waiting for a court that typically eats up most of a player’s time. With so many people competing to play on the courts early in the morning or after the sun goes down, the wait times make the experience less attractive, Rodrigues said. “We are excited that Pickleball Kingdom has opened in West Chandler,” said Mayor Hartke. “Repurposing a big-box gym into 15 indoor pickleball courts is an excellent healthy, indoor exercise option for our Chandler residents.” Pickleball Kingdom is also launching a new initiative to introduce pickleball to everyone. Pickleball 101 is a free class for the public, regardless if they’re a member or not. It’s an introduction to the sport, overview of the rules and coaching of the basic fundamentals of the game. “At the Kingdom, we believe that pickleball is good for you physically, socially, and spiritually,” Rodrigues said. “We want everyone in the game. The reason most people haven’t tried the sport yet is either they don’t know anyone who will teach them, they don’t have the equipment, or they don’t know where to go. “As ambassadors of the sport, we decided to eliminate all those barriers into this great sport ,” he added, noting the class is offered most days of the week. “Anyone can go to our website and follow the link to get registered for a class time that works for them,” he said. “We have highly qualified coaches to teach them, we provide the paddles and balls for our students to use, and they’ll be playing on the custom-colored courts of Pickleball Kingdom,” Rodrigues said. “All they have to do is show up with tennis shoes or sneakers. I would like to personally invite everyone to sign up for one of our free classes and experience what all your friends are addicted to.” Besides reserved court times, Pickleball Kingdom also offers locker rooms and showers, ball machines and a pro shop, leagues and lessons and a lounge area. There also is a mezzanine viewing area and daily drop-in times are available. Its three levels of membership range from $85 a month or $935 annually to $190 a month of $2,090 for a year, with no court or player fees. More details are at PickleballKingdom.com

The 15-court Pickleball Kingdom at the northeast corner of Ray and Rural roads offers an indoor facility for one of the nation’s fastest

growing sports. (Special to the Arizonan)

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Mother-daughter duo expands Chandler tattoo removal shop

BY JOSH ORTEGA

Arizona News Staff Writer

It all started at a Cubs Spring Training in 2005 or was it 2006. Marci Zimmerman-White noticed fans taking off their shirt revealing a variety of old tattoos fading and barely recognizable. She said that moment started her on the journey to starting Delete Tattoo Removal & Medical Salon. Even during the pandemic, the business continued to grow from its flagship location in Phoenix in 2010. Now they have a second location in downtown Chandler she opened in 2021. “Mistakes were made, people change,” White said. “What does someone do when they grow tired of something that’s supposed to be permanent?” White grew up in the Midwest and moved to Arizona in 1999, when her husband Michael accepted a job offer. She said change is a part of life and despite tattoos representing something people initially wish to be permanent, it doesn’t always work out that way. “We’re designed to change,” she said. “Our bodies change and our preferences change.” Marketing Director Lena Zimmerman joined her mom’s business in 2019 and has learned what she does and doesn’t want with tattoos. She said her mom strives to fight the taboo that tattoo removal is too expensive, too painful and too unbelievable. They overcome this by offering payment plans, numbing the area of the tattoo and using their unique “Delete Method” to treat the skin and the tattoo together. “We’re really treating the tattoo and the skin holistically, as opposed to just lasering away the ink,” she said. The Delete Method looks to remove tattoos in the most efficient and effective way possible over multiple treatments. Traditionally, tattoo removal requires a laser using very short pulse durations that only breaks away the tattoo ink. Zimmerman said Delete focuses on treating the individual person’s skin to ensure that it doesn’t blister and scar. “I’ve also received every treatment that we offer in our store,” she said. “It hurts if you don’t choose the numbing [agent] but the numbing makes it so much better.”

She compares the laser treatment to a rubber band snapping against the skin multiple times and the heat from it only gets more intense with bigger tattoos.

White said she warns people to do their homework with tattoos and not to use white ink – which lightens colors such as from red to pink –because they’re more difficult to completely remove. “You want to go into it thoughtfully,” she said. The entire process to remove a tattoo depends on the size and amount of color used but can last anywhere from one to two years. This is spread out to every two months, or eight to 12 visits on average, and the individual treatments start at the bottom layer of skin, unlike traditional methods on the top. The cost can range from $100 per visit for a small piece to $500 per visit for a full-arm tattoo, often called a “sleeve.” “Removing a tattoo is part of an overall process,” White said. She said she’s seen a litany of tattoo removals, some racist and gang tattoos, but mostly those dedicated to ex-lovers. Since 2015, they’ve used the Picoway Laser by Syneron Candela uses highly concentrated soundwaves that reaches the deepest pigment and tattoo ink but uses the shortest picosecond pulses. This translates to less heat, fewer side effects, more ink cleared, and in combination with skin rejuvenation, allows to make the “Delete Guarantee” of complete tattoo removal. White said the pandemic marked a “stressful” time but they knew the other side of it would mark a turning point for the business. “We were really committed to not laying off anyone,” she said. “It’s always been the plan to expand.” She said she’s “really proud of the team” she has and taking care of people is the best part of owning her own business. One of her most memorable stories was removing knuckle tattoos on a man that allowed him to get hired for his dream job. “The most impactful thing for me is owning my own business,” she said. In 2019, White founded the Delete Foundation, a nonprofit aimed at providing low-cost to no-cost tattoo removal for former inmates and gang members as well as sex trafficking and domestic violence victims. “We try to the right work, the right way every day,” she said. “And if you do that, you can guarantee your product.”

Information: deleteitnow.com, 602 654-0001

Lena Zimmerman, left, is the managing director, and Marci White is the owner of Delete Tattoo Removal and Medical Salonbin Chandler. (David Minton/Staff Photographer)

This is the business end of a tattoo removal laser at Delete Tattoo Removal and Medical Salon. (David Minton/Staff Photographer)