City Council unanimously approved a site plan for the pickleball courts at its June 21 meeting. The development will include eight lighted courts, two shade structures, one lighted championship court with bleacher seating, fencing around the courts, landscaping and other amenities. Council also approved a contract for $160,000 with Parkhill Inc. to design and engineer the park’s addition.
“We’re calling this the Taj Mahal pickleball complex,” Mayor John Huffman said. “It looks amazing, and we have gotten a ton of demand for pickleball services in the community.”
The complex will be available not only for residents but also as a destination to attract tournaments, according to discussion at the council meeting.
Bicentennial Park is located north of Southlake Boulevard between Shady Oaks Drive and White Chapel Boulevard. The park already has multiple amenities, including baseball fields, the Southlake Tennis Center, a playground, batting cages, basketball courts and a turf field.
Southlake Community Services Director Chris Tribble said pickleball was ranked as the primary priority for a new park amenity in a survey gathered in the Parks, Recreation & Open Space Master Plan.
A combination of tennis, badminton and ping-pong, pickleball is a paddle sport played among two to four players across a net.
Pickleball is one of America’s fastest-growing sports, according to the Sports and Fitness Industry Association.
The community services department will also look at creating an area to bring in food trucks for large events held at the complex, Tribble said.
“It’s very exciting for Southlake,” City Council Member Kathy Talley said. “We’ll have a world-class facility.”
The map below shows the area of the park where the pickleball complex will be built.
