Galesburg pickleball courts could replace Bateman Park tennis courts

GALESBURG – Goodbye, tennis. Hello, pickleball.

Galesburg City Council, at its Monday meeting, will consider an offer to install pickleball courts in Bateman Park, near Losey Street and Maple Avenue. The project would convert the two existing tennis courts into a total of six pickleball courts.

City staff recommend that City Council award the pickleball court facility to All Weather Courts, Inc. in the amount of $ 51,800.

The project will include: 1. the development of the courts; 2. pickleball, net and pole dividing systems; 3. surface preparation; and 4. various sanding and painting of the poles. This project also includes the resurfacing of the existing half-basketball court and the painting of new lines.

Galesburg Parks and Recreation Director Tony Oligney-Estill said in addition to seeing an increase in popularity, some residents have suggested adding pickleball courts.

“I don’t know of any outdoor pickleball courts in or around Galesburg,” said Oligney-Estill, who noted that the YMCA and the Lakeside Recreation Facility are able to provide temporary indoor pickleball courts.

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“Bateman’s tennis courts were going to have to be redone soon and no one was using them for tennis as most of the tennis community uses the high school courts. It seemed logical to use the existing tennis space that no one was using and which needed to be refurbished into pickleball courts. “

According to USA Pickleball, pickleball combines elements of tennis, badminton and table tennis. It is played both indoors and outdoors on a badminton court and a slightly modified tennis net. Using a paddle and a plastic ball with a hole, the sport can be played in doubles or singles.

All Weather Courts has submitted an initial one-time offer in the amount of $ 97,140. As the response was considerably higher than expected for this project, the company was contacted to discuss pricing and why the costs may have been so high.

According to a city letter on the agenda, the key issue was the cost of steel and fabric for the fence. Prices continue to be inflated for this type of product at this time. The seller has recommended removing these items for now and processing them at a later date when the cost of these products stabilizes. By removing the items from the original offering, a savings of $ 45,340 could be made, making this project achievable this year.

Notes from City Staff If approved, the fence and fabric will be processed at a later date when prices stabilize for these products.

The balance of the recreation fund would be used to pay for the project if approved by city council.

Oligney-Estill said the project, if approved on Monday, would be completed by the fall.

The city installed new play equipment at Bateman Park in 2017 with slides and two swings with a zipline.