Bringing Pickleball Play to New Communities

At Rec, our mission is to enable more access to play, and that's why we're excited to be bringing pickleball, the fastest growing sport in America, to two new cities in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Pickleball in Marin City

Over the summer, Rec partnered with Play Marin – a local non-profit dedicated to increasing access to sports for youth – and Marin Housing Authority to convert an empty and unused tennis court into a vibrant new hub for pickleball in the community. Along with the resurfacing and installation of 4 professional-grade pickleball courts, Rec also renovated the run-down basketball court adjacent, and installed two top-of-the-line basketball nets to encourage more play, always.

Paul Austin, founder and Executive Director of Play Marin said, “Partnering with Rec has allowed our organization to introduce a new sport to children and families. This summer here in Marin City, we had kids out there playing for hours every day. My hope is that having access to this new facility will enable our kids to see pickleball as another sport that they can enjoy and have fun with as they grow up.”

This partnership is made available in partnership with the Marin Housing Authority and Golden Gate Village. Residents of Golden Gate Village have free access to the courts at any time via Rec, and others throughout the community pay a fee to use the courts. The proceeds of these court reservations, pickleball classes and tournaments are then given back to Golden Gate Village.

Pickleball in Emeryville

Over in the East Bay, pickleball has found a new home at the Emeryville Center of Community Life, (ECCL). A shared gym space for the highschool and broader Emeryville community, the City of Emeryville's Community Services Department and Rec collaborated to figure out how they could introduce pickleball to the community during hours that it wasn't being used for school or other activities.

The result was the introduction of pickleball to the ECCL gym every Saturday through the summer, fall and now through the winter season given popular demand. Every Saturday, the large gym transforms into a pickleball mecca for those that might be seeking some shade from nearby city's outdoor courts, or simply want a change of pace where Rec offers a variety of instructional classes for different skill levels, community play and court reservations.

"Bringing pickleball to Emeryville has been rewarding and a total breeze partnering with Rec", says Rebecca Sermeno, Community Services Director at the City of Emeryville. "It was amazing to see how Rec made it so easy for everyone to quickly sign up for a lesson or join in the fun in an Open Play session – watching the community grow in a matter of weeks has been so fun to watch."