The sport is sweeping the country, but a backlash over noise is turning neighbor against neighbor.
“We hear the ball hit the paddle from inside our homes all day long, 8 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. I want to stress that it’s all day, nonstop.”
Last year, the center asked the City Council to greenlight a plan to permanently convert the tennis court into four pickleball courts, resurface and paint the playing surface, install fixed net posts, and replace damaged fencing. The outdoor facility is owned by the city, but the nonprofit center has leased it for years and said it would pay for the upgrades.
Judy Lough, left, and Kathi Scarminach play a game of pickleball at the Goleta Valley Community Center in Goleta. And yet, like more than 300 other pickleball players in this town of about 30,000 people, Hayes strongly supports the court revitalization plan and cast doubt on claims that pickleball noise bothers nearby residents.
“Homeowners’ associations say, ‘Let’s do a nice thing and make tennis courts into pickleball courts.’ The outcome of that is additional noise,” he said. “The HOA is convinced of their exposure and takes action to avoid escalation, usually by settling, by either agreeing to no pickleball or drastically reducing noise associated with pickleball.”
Often, he is hired to measure the sound levels emanating from pickleball courts so the results can be compared against volume thresholds outlined in municipal codes or HOA rules.Sometimes that requires him to set up his handheld NTI Audio XL2 audio and acoustic analyzer on a tripod at multiple points on or near a court during play to determine how loud it is. Or Willis will set the device up on the property line of an adjacent home to measure how much noise is actually reaching neighbors.
That higher noise impact can mean the difference between violating rules and regulations, as evidenced by numerous places where tennis has been deemed permissible without sound mitigation but pickleball has not. It can also have negative consequences for nearby residents, according to Tom Spendiarian, principal architect at Spendiarian & Willis.
Some pickleball players scoff at concerns about noise and commotion and emphasize the sport’s benefits.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Cargo ship carrying Porsches, Lamborghinis, and Bentleys sinks in the AtlanticThe ship sunk off the coast off the coast of the Azores.
Read more »
These Are the Only 3 States Where COVID Is Spiking — Best LifeEven as infections continue to decrease from coast to coast, some states are still seeing COVID cases spiking for the time being.
Read more »
NOAA’s GOES-T blasts into orbit | National Oceanic and Atmospheric AdministrationNOAA’s GOEST satellite successfully blasted into orbit today from Cape Canaveral, FL! GOEST will support weather forecasts for the U.S. West Coast, Hawaii & Alaska. Find out more about our newest satellite: NOAASatellites nasa ReadytoGOES
Read more »
Pickleball mania leading to an epidemic of injuries among baby boomersHaving six hours a day to play pickleball isn’t the best for bones and joints.
Read more »
More school mask mandates fall in West Coast statesMore mask mandates are falling for schoolchildren in West Coast states this month, as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations have continued to plummet.
Read more »
Editorial: End drilling in California waters to protect the coast and climateCalifornia lawmakers should respond to the 2021 Orange County oil spill and end drilling in state waters to reduce risks to the climate and coastline.
Read more »