Sussex resident takes aim at pickleball
As Sussex County Council grapples with limits on booming housing development, a local resident at its July 22 meeting asked for creation of rules to control what she sees as another growing problem – pickleball.
Jennifer August, owner of The Art Therapy Way, pointed out the health concerns related to pickleball, a rapidly growing sport especially popular among older people, who make up a fast-growing demographic in Sussex County.
“Some residents have described pickleball noise as torture,” August said.
The loud sound of a pickleball match can contribute to cardiac conditions, high blood pressure and concentration difficulties, she said.
The game is played on a court about half the size of a tennis court. There is a net at center court, and the game is played with paddles and perforated plastic balls.
Washington state Congressman Joel Pritchard and his businessman friend Bill Bell created the game in 1965 on Bainbridge Island, Wash., to give their bored children an activity, according to the USA Pickleball website.
They used a badminton court and improvised with ping-pong paddles and perforated plastic balls. They eventually lowered the net from 60 inches to 36. The following weekend, Barney McCallum joined in as the rules were still being revised to create the game of pickleball, which today is played by millions.
Little-used tennis courts have been converted to pickleball courts, and courts specifically for the game have been popping up at parks, schools and housing developments across the country.
But the proliferation of pickleball courts has been followed by concerns about noise. Complaints have moved from the pickleball court to the courtroom in some communities.
The recommended safe distance between residences and pickleball courts is 600 to 1,000 feet to avoid contributing to health problems of neighbors, August told council.
She asked council to adopt a land-use rule, or nuisance or consumer health ordinance. That might entail inspections for construction of courts and rules forbidding playing the game at times that bother neighbors. She said some communities have removed pickleball courts in response to complaints about health concerns. There are indoor courts that do not cause disturbances, she said.
August made her suggestion during the public comments session near the beginning of the council meeting. Council only listens to comments and does not respond at the time of the meeting. After the meeting, councilmen were noncommittal about August’s suggestion.
“There are a lot of good aspects [to pickleball], but there is a nuisance,” said Councilman John Rieley.
Kevin Conlon came to the Cape Gazette with nearly 40 years of newspaper experience since graduating from St. Bonaventure University in New York with a bachelor's degree in mass communication. He reports on Sussex County government and other assignments as needed.
His career spans working as a reporter and editor at daily newspapers in upstate New York, including The Daily Gazette in Schenectady. He comes to the Cape Gazette from the Cortland Standard, where he was an editor for more than 25 years, and in recent years also contributed as a columnist and opinion page writer. He and his staff won regional and state writing awards.
Conlon was relocating to Lewes when he came across an advertisement for a reporter job at the Cape Gazette, and the decision to pursue it paid off. His new position gives him an opportunity to stay in a career that he loves, covering local news for an independently owned newspaper.
Conlon is the father of seven children and grandfather to two young boys. In his spare time, he trains for and competes in triathlons and other races. Now settling into the Cape Region, he is searching out hilly trails and roads with wide shoulders. He is a fan of St. Bonaventure sports, especially rugby and basketball, as well as following the Mets, Steelers and Celtics.
