The 6+1 pickleball/tennis option makes the most sense for Rideout
Sometimes 25 to 30 PB players arrive on a Saturday to find two tennis players occupying one of the pairs of PB courts.
When the tennis/pickleball courts at Rideout Playground are resurfaced next year, it seems to me that the best plan for the benefit of everyone is “6+1” (“Option 3” in the Recreation Commission’s terminology — six pickleball courts with permanent nets plus one tennis court with a permanent net). The 6+1 option is fully multi-use: Both tennis and PB can be played simultaneously without interference.
Neither the status quo (“Option 1” — three permanent tennis courts striped for two temporary PB nets each) nor PB-only (“Option 2” — eight permanent PB nets, no tennis) can meet the needs of the town nearly as well. Whereas the PB-only option unwisely leaves West Acton with no tennis courts, the status quo creates conflict between PB and tennis. Sometimes 25 to 30 PB players arrive on a Saturday to find two tennis players occupying one of the pairs of PB courts, leading to frustratingly long lines of PB players. This option also forces PB players to set up and take down the nets each time, placing an unkind and unnecessary burden on our vibrant, all-ages PB community.
The Recreation Commission’s strategic plan quotes National Park and Recreation Association guidelines: A town like Acton ought to have two tennis courts and six PB courts. Not counting Rideout, whose uncomfortably shared design really meets neither need directly, there are five tennis courts (Emerson Park) and zero PB courts; 6+1 corrects this imbalance.
Admittedly, pickleball is noisy. But letters bemoaning the noise do not seem helpful for arguing that keeping the status quo is better than 6+1, unless the authors are advocating a complete ban on PB at Rideout. However, noise-abating screening could help address this.
Acton needs pickleball. The Rideout refurbishment is a fine opportunity to address this.
Irl Smith
Hayward Mill Road
