Martinez leaders to discuss closing pickleball courts at Hidden Valley Park

By John Ramos

In February of last year, Martinez proudly opened eight brand-new pickleball courts to the public. They were hugely popular with everyone but the neighbors. Now, on Wednesday, the city will be meeting to decide whether to close them down permanently.

Pickleball has been around since the 1960’s. But it really took off in recent years, and Rusty Lent was an early adopter. He discovered the sport 15 years ago when there weren’t any courts around Martinez. So he and some of his senior friends began laying down tape to create their own pickleball court out of a tennis court.

“We were putting our tape down, then pulling it up,” he said. “Yeah. It was almost like a bunch of little kids getting together and making their own game.”

But just like little kids, they make a whole lot of noise when they play. And in the case of Hidden Valley Park in Martinez, that spells trouble for the neighbors who live right next to the courts.  

“It’s miserable,” said Jason Garry. “It’s comparable to a gun shooting range next to your house, with the sporadic pops. So, it’s a sharp, fast popping sound, and if you listen to that over 10 minutes right next to your house, where you can’t leave, that’s a really bad feeling.  That’s very bad.”

Garry has been putting up with the sound for more than a year. He and other neighbors assumed they would have to proceed with a lawsuit over the matter. So, he said he’s encouraged by the new sign posted at the facility, saying the city is meeting on Wednesday to consider shutting the courts down.

“I’m not 100% that this will pass. I do have a good feeling, though. I think we’re moving in the right direction,” said Garry. “I think the city council understands the bad part about living next to a pickleball court.”

If the council understands it, it may be because one of the neighbors who lives right above the courts sent them daily recordings of the raucous din, taken from inside her home. 

“And they only got to hear it for a few minutes, maybe two minutes at a time. But every day I did that for about two weeks, and said, please, please help me.”

She didn’t want to be identified for fear of retaliation, but every player we spoke to on Sunday acknowledged the sound problem.

“I think the residents have a valid point,” said player Dave Jacobson.  “There is a certain amount of noise that comes from a popping sound that comes from pickleball. But I think a compromise can be worked out.”

He suggested raising the fences up to a uniform height and covering them with acoustic panels to block the sound to the houses. Another suggestion was requiring special sound-deadening balls, currently available, that lower the decibel levels considerably. But player Alec Beyer admitted that it may be hard to enforce.

“Getting everyone on board to play with the same balls, when everyone buys their own, it’s like, ‘oh, I have this ball, why would I have to use this other ball?'” he said.  “But if it’s to keep the courts here, I feel like more players than not would do their best to change.”

No one is doing anything wrong, and the players say that with a lack of available courts, it would be a huge loss to see the Hidden Valley courts go.  But the city may be doing what it must to avoid litigation. And on Sunday afternoon, Rusty Lent was sad to leave the courts, perhaps for the last time.

“The benefits definitely outweigh the downsides of pickleball, for sure,” he said.

Unless, like Jason Garry, it’s in your backyard.

“I’m a little surprised without litigation,” he said, “because that seemed to be the aggressive move for the homeowners, and the likely move. So, to do it without, I think that is great. And it is surprising.”

 According to the posted sign, city staff is recommending the closure of the eight courts due to “persistent noise and parking complaints.”  

On Wednesday, the council will “discuss the item, hear public comment, and determine the next steps.”