The River City Pickleball Club is well on its way to playing on a new home court. City officials on Tuesday unveiled the design plan for an 18-court complex at Ben Hawes Park. The plan also includes several spaces for shade, seating, practice areas, and other amenities.
Lose Design was hired to bring the concept to life. The company recently completed the Bristol complex in Tennessee.
While much work has gone into the plan unveiled Tuesday, Parks and Recreation Director Amanda Rogers said there could be some final tweaks. They plan to host a public meeting on August 29 at 5 p.m. at the Parks and Recreation Administrative Center to gather public opinion on the project before wrapping up the design and putting it out for bid.
Owensboro Parks and Recreation is partnering with the River City Pickleball Club (RCPC) to build the facility. The City has earmarked up to $1 million for the project and will provide funding at a 2:1 rate, meaning it will supply $2 toward the project for every $1 raised by the club.
“At this point, River City Pickleball Club is going to continue their fundraising efforts. The City team — representatives from Public Works, Engineering, and our Parks and Rec staff — will work with Lose Designs to continue those concept pieces and get construction drawings prepared to bid,” Rogers said.
Rogers said the hope is to bid on the project in November and complete construction by the summer of 2025.
While the facility is being built to satisfy the growing popularity of pickleball locally, the complex is expected to be certified by the Professional Pickleball Association in order to serve as a major tournament site in the future.
The layout of the complex calls for 16 recreational courts arranged in pods of fours, plus another two side-by-side champion courts that include sideline seating. Each seating structure will have a built-in shade component.
The plan also shows an area for a practice wall and dink zone as well as an area for lessons. There will also be a dedicated area for food trucks to park.
Rogers said they do not plan to build a restroom structure at the complex, but there are restrooms a short walk away in the current parking lot at the park. A walking path will connect the lot to the courts. Rogers also noted they plan to renovate those restrooms before the complex is completed.
“I think this is the best option financially for us to spend our dollars toward the pickleball complex, as opposed to the addition of a $200,000 or so restroom facility,” Rogers said.
The project is planned to be bid out in sections. The first phase will focus on the westernmost half of the complex, including most of the recreational courts, one champion court, the walking path, and the food truck parking loop. The second phase will include the second champion court and four more recreational courts. The easternmost portion of the complex is being left open to allow for potential expansion later.
Marc Bond, Lose Design’s Vice President of the Knoxville office, said the phased approach is primarily because the cost quote came in higher than expected for the entire project.
“We really feel like we’ve got a good contingency factor built into that, so we feel pretty confident that we can get it bid out,” Bond said.
When choosing the plot of land, City Manager Nate Pagan said it was an “underutilized area” sizeable enough to hold the project. Officials also note there are no residential areas in close proximity to the court.
Still, Rogers said they considered building a privacy fence and a tree buffer space to further prevent noise pollution from games.
