On April 5, Pickleball and tennis enthusiasts crossed rackets in a turf battle over a proposal to convert Robb Field tennis courts in Ocean Beach into 36 pickleball courts.
Both sides, about equally represented, packed Santa Clara Recreation Center volleying back-and-forth during Mission Bay Park Committee’s monthly meeting. The committee heard both sides out but took no immediate action.
Pickleball supporters contended there is a lack of places to play locally for the rapidly growing sport. Peninsula Tennis Club players, who use Robb Field courts, turned out in large numbers with colorful signs and costumes to argue it is unfair, and inadvisable, to remove existing tennis court space.
Pickleball proponent Stefan Boyland argued Robb Field tennis courts are underutilized and in poor condition, contending tennis players there could be accommodated at nearby Barnes Tennis Center.
“It’s a sport we love and hope to bring to Robb Field,” said Boyland who, along with Mike Shinzaki, has been lobbying to develop more pickleball courts regionwide. “We advocate for local residents who want more courts in San Diego. We are happy to see tennis folks here because there is a lot of misinformation, and it’s good for tennis players to hear our proposal directly from us.”
“We have assessed over 50 candidates (pickleball court) locations and none of them have worked because they’re either too small or there is no parking,” said Shinzaki during a joint slideshow presentation with Boyland. “A location needs to be away from residences for light and noise permitting. Adding new cement is not a realistic solution. So we must share finite public land. The City asked us to prove local support: We have 4,000 local players on the petition. We have 11,000 letters of support.”
Todd Sprague of Peninsula Tennis Club countered that the pickleball side’s argument was flawed. He attacked their study of utilization of Robb Field’s tennis courts, claiming statistics they used failed to address that tennis courts there are heavily utilized more at certain times than others.
“Peninsula (Tennis Club) is in good standing under its use permit, and parks and recreation does not believe it (Robb Field) is a viable alternative for a pickleball facility,” Sprague said. “Tennis is a growing sport. In San Diego, there are about five to six times more tennis players than pickleball players. There’s a great need now for more tennis courts.”
Added Sprague: “Seventy percent of tennis is played on public facilities. So the idea of taking any public facilities out of circulation is a real problem for tennis players. This is not to say pickleball isn’t growing. It’s just to say tennis is growing and actually services a whole lot more people. What we all recognize is that (tennis court) utilization has peaks and valleys. They (pickleball supporters) would like you to believe that’s not the case. But it’s true.”
“Our view is that the public parks are meant for the benefit of the entire community,” concluded Shinzaki after the April 5 meeting. “This isn’t about which sport is better, but about efficient use of public park space. Right now, 37 combined tennis courts at [Robb Field] plus Barnes combined are hardly used (25% usage, on average). The City should require them to share space, or cede ground, allowing pickleball a chance to exist and grow.”
During public comment, more than one person testified that they played both sports, adding the real issue wasn’t pickleball versus tennis, but rather finding ways to accommodate both sports and encouraging more active recreation in general.
When asked what their next step would be, Boyland replied, “To get approval for re-purposing Robb Field tennis courts for pickleball, and to get a letter of recommendation so the City can consider this.”
