Peru committee hears from tennis players against painting pickleball lines at Washington Park

The dispute for the Washington Park courts is in full swing as Peru aldermen heard pleas from the tennis community against painting the tennis courts with pickleball lines during Monday’s Public Services Committee Meeting.

La Salle-Peru High School Head Tennis Coach Aaron Guenther and St. Bede Academy Head Tennis Coach Jill Urban-Bollis spoke during public comment Monday to ask the committee to consider the impact painting the tennis courts with pickleball lines would have on the local tennis community.

This comes after nearly 50 pickleball players overtook the council room on July 1 to show their support during the Illinois Valley Pickleball Club’s presentation requesting the paint job to go from four to 10 pickleball courts, allowing the courts to be utilized as both tennis and pickleball courts.

Guenther said there is a rich history of the tennis courts at Washington Park including, hosting many Illinois Valley Community College summer tournaments and L-P’s prior matches. St. Bede plays on the courts now.

He said the Illinois Valley Pickleball Club’s rapid growth and rise in interest is fantastic and hopes the club can get the accommodation it is seeking.

“That being said, I do not believe that their expansion should come at the cost of other sports such as tennis,” Guenther said. “Tennis in Washington Park has already lost one court to pickleball and it’s now at risk of losing more.”

He said painting the courts may appear collaborative and equitable. The idea is not as utopian as it may seem and the argument for tennis players utilizing L-P’s new complex misses a component, he said.

“L-P relies on programs such as Peru’s summer recreation tennis to give our student athletes a background and foundational skills to be high achieving tennis players during their time in the program,” he said.

Expanding the pickleball footprint over the tennis footprint will limit exposure to tennis both for the summer recreational program and for general play, Guenther said.

Urban-Bollis said it’s also difficult for some players to get to the L-P complex to play tennis.

“Park courts are accessible to children with adults who can easily reach them by walking or biking,” she said. “L-P courts are less accessible without a vehicle and present various safety concerns to high traffic areas without sidewalks.”

Removing dedicated tennis courts would undermine various programs and diminish the future of tennis within the community, Urban-Bollis said.

“It’s not a tennis problem. It’s not a pickleball problem,” Urban-Bollis said. “It’s a planning problem.”

Director of Parks, Recreation and Special Events Adam Thorson said to address the presentation last week he called Putnam County Painting to determine the cost of painting the courts.

Thorson said he looked into the cost of painting a pickleball court on each side of each tennis net – an additional six pickleball courts.

“We were told it would be a pretty easy and cheap solution to the problem,” he said. “And I personally just don’t think that’s the case. Putnam County Painting told me it costs about $1,500 per court.”

The total cost would be $9,000, but Putnam County Painting told Thorson it would not complete the work.

Thorson said Putnam County Painting told him that by painting the courts it would be ruining the investment already put into it.

“I think Norm, from Putnam County Painting, is honest and respects what we do here and he doesn’t want his name on a bad job.”

The committee then took time discussing potential solutions that would be fair to both tennis and pickleball players.

Alderman Tom Payton asked the committee if the pickleball courts on the ice rink could simply be turned around to face east and west – meaning there would just be two courts instead of three.

Payton said he has made it a point to drive by Washington Park more often, since last week’s meeting during the days.

“And this morning at 9 o’clock as I was driving by it wasn’t overly packed,” he said. “But I do kind of agree on a couple of things. They need a list of rules and etiquette for things, which we should do since it’s our court.”

Payton also said there were other parks in the area that the council could use, as the city spent a lot of money on the tennis courts.

“We have colleges and high schools that are using them,” he said. “And I don’t want them to be short changed. But I also see the need to support pickleball, and they’re growing.”

Thorson said when the city first looked at having the project completed the intention was to accommodate both groups and the high school and the college.

“I still think that can happen where it’s at,” he said. “You keep it how it is and you still make everybody happy at some point down the road with something. I don’t know what.”

“I think if you mark up those courts,” Thorson said. “It will be just pickleball invasion and it’s not fair to that other group at all. It’s just not.”

Alderman Jason Edgcomb said he agreed with both Thorson and Payton. He said he had reached out to some people who believed that turning the courts on the rink would accommodate and help matters.

Mayor Ken Kolowski said turning the courts had been discussed but then the players would be staring into the sun.

Edgcomb said the committee acknowledges the need and want for more courts, but it’s not a quick fix.

“I think if we do this, we should do it right,” he said. “We should find a place to put nice courts. Where they can have a large gathering and do it the right way. And I think that’s what we should be pushing for.”

Kolowski said he is working on a solution with Thorson and he needs a few weeks to figure some things out.