Dual lines added at Asheville's public courts for shared use by pickleball, tennis

Sarah Honosky, Asheville Citizen Times
·3 min read
Tennis players compete at the 2021 Asheville Open.
Tennis players compete at the 2021 Asheville Open.

ASHEVILLE - After pickleball and tennis players butted heads over court space, Parks and Recreation struck a compromise, and several months later the results are in: court conversions are complete, with all courts dual-lined for both sports.

The solution preserved the city's inventory of 11 public tennis courts and nearly doubled the pickleball offerings from 12 to 22 courts.

The plan was announced in November, and the work is now finished, according to a March 9 news release from the city. The decision followed months of meetings between local players of both sports, with the pickleball population growing fast amid a rising call for dedicated courts.

Pickleball is a tennis-badminton-ping pong hybrid played with paddles and a hard, plastic whiffle-like ball. A single tennis court can accommodate two pickleball games at once, usually with four players each.

Along with the dual lining, Parks and Recreation announced a shared use schedule for the courts, which will begin March 13.

One tennis court can house two pickleball courts, typically with four players a side.
One tennis court can house two pickleball courts, typically with four players a side.

Previous coverage:Pickleball, tennis make peace: Asheville announces compromise. How will your parks change?

More:Answer Woman: Is Buncombe County the next frontier for pickleball play? Fletcher?

Members of the tennis and pickleball communities were involved in crafting the schedule to support the significant growth of their sports.

According to the release, dual lines have existed on some shared use courts in parks across the city since 2016 when Parks and Recreation brought the first outdoor public pickleball courts to the area.

Impacted by the dual lining and shared schedule are: Kenilworth Park, Malvern Hills Park, Montford Park, Murphy-Oakley Park and Weaver Park.

Aston Park Tennis Center’s 12 outdoor clay courts were not affected, nor were six low-cost indoor pickleball courts at Linwood Crump Shiloh and Stephens-Lee community centers.

More:Watch bodycam: Asheville police release footage of Aston Park protest, arrests

Related:Why is Asheville Skatepark closed? What's happening with new Candace Pickens playground?

What to look for

Tennis court dimensions remain white and pickleball court dimensions are light blue. Two pickleball courts and one tennis court can fit within each multipurpose court. Existing tennis nets and posts will remain at all courts.

Pickleball players have brought their own portable nets to these locations for years, but Parks and Recreation will debut a system in the next few weeks in which nets can be checked out for free. The department also plans to add semi-permanent rollaway pickleball nets at some locations. More information will be shared once a delivery date is secured, said the release.

Shared use schedule details:

  • If courts are not being used, anyone can play either pickleball or tennis.

  • If there is not enough court space for the players of both sports, the sport with priority time is permitted to play and the other players should relinquish the court(s).

  • Time limits for all users are 1 hour for singles, 1.5 hours for doubles, and 2 hours for groups of 6-12.

  • Rules and play schedules for each park can be found at https://bit.ly/3yoFmQK.

Sarah Honosky is the city government reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. News Tips? Email shonosky@citizentimes.com or message on Twitter at @slhonosky. Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Ready to play? Asheville court dual lines for tennis, pickleball