Sam Fletcher reports from the Oak Harbor City Council meeting of Tue., Mar. 19, 2024 for the Whidbey News-Times.
Unanimously, Oak Harbor city council approved an agreement for a company to create a plan for new pickleball courts.
The $78,100 project, awarded to RWD Landscape Architects, will lead to eight new pickleball courts in either Sumner or Fort Nugent Park.
They Said It
A total of $50,000 of the $78,100 was pre-approved, as that funding originally was meant to upgrade Rotary Park, said Councilmember Jim Woessner. When the quote came in much higher for the upgrades, council shifted those funds to go toward pickleball courts.
“I think there’s no doubt that pickleball is replacing tennis and some other sports,” he said. “I remember when tetherball was in every park, and we need to update our facilities as times change.”
Similarly, he asked, if $78,100 goes toward the plan, what happens if they cannot find the funds for the much higher price tag of implementing it?
There are a lot of alternative funding options, [Parks and Rec Director Brian] Smith said. The department will continue to apply for grants, and historically state representatives have been very supportive with funding.
“We’ll just keep applying for grants. We’ll get it. Trust the process. It will happen,” Smith said. “I have no doubt we’ll have pickleball courts, and I’ll need a little help on my backhand and how to keep people out of my kitchen, but it’s a matter of timing.”
A key part of this is the passion of the players, said Councilmember Shane Hoffmire, some of whom showed their support at the meeting by donning team shirts.
“South Whidbey has Pickles Deli, love it. We have the North Whidbey Picklers, so after this, I hope someone’s around, I’d love to know where to get one of those pink shirts,” he said. “If the North Whidbey Picklers are as diligent with reaching out to our state representatives as they have been with us, it certainly will happen.”
The eight new courts are ultimately a smaller project on the path to a larger one, a rec center, said Councilmember Eric Marshall. The rec center will provide long-term foul weather solutions and otherwise provide more opportunity for the community.
