The PicklePlex beside the Wellness Center will celebrate its one-year anniversary Thursday.
In its first year in operation, the unique complex has provided countless Tellico Village residents a chance to learn, enjoy and compete in pickleball.
“We’re excited about it and people walk by and they go, ‘Wow we did that’,” Simon Bradbury, Tellico Village Parks and Recreation director, said. “Because if you look at the wall of fame up there, those are the people that made this happen. It was the community coming together with time, talent and treasure. They donated their own money and hard work to make it happen.”
Since the official opening a year ago, the PicklePlex has hosted numerous events, tournaments and friendly matches. Players from all skill levels — true beginners to Senior Olympics champions — all have reaped the benefits of the facility.
As a result, the courts are a popular attraction most of the year.
Gordon Young, president of the Tellico Village Pickleball Club, has seen the sport’s popularity expand over the years and appreciates how the PicklePlex has contributed to its growth.
“We know the sport has grown somewhat exponentially,” Young said. “Tellico Village now has well over 1,000 members in the pickleball club, so it’s about 10% of our population. So as an asset for Tellico Village it’s great. We held a tournament this spring and we drew 186 people and in general the comments — we had six states, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio — the general feedback was very, very positive.”
Young said the facility provides players more opportunity to play regardless of outside weather conditions.
“Having covered courts, whether it’s rain or shine, you know if you are on these courts you have availability,” Young said. “So, you don’t lose the time that we would otherwise lose. It might be a little more crowded, but you get the opportunity to play. Our courts in general, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., every day are close to 90% utilized. At 6 a.m. you will often see three of the courts being used.”
The rapid expansion of pickleball shows no signs of slowing down.
“Right now, pickleball continues to grow,” Bradbury said. “It’s also going into the elementary schools and the high schools. There’re even places that are opening up indoor pickleball bars and places to go for entertainment. So, it’s not just a senior demographic sport anymore. It’s exploding.”
Bradbury said he believes the sport has brought people together unlike anything in recent years. While great for exercise, he said the social aspect might be the biggest driver.
He also said the PicklePlex helps the Village as a whole.
“It’s good for property values, whether you play pickleball or not,” Bradbury said. “The uniqueness about it is the community came together and did this themselves. Coming from the pickleball court, from the Timeless Tellico Foundation, it was truly a community coming together to make something happen.”
Many people and organizations made the facility a reality.
“It was a great community effort,” Bradbury said. “And from the foundation standpoint, that was our first big project, but that was just to showcase that we’re capable of doing lots of things and have potential. You do lots of big things with the foundation and there is a lot of potential there.”
One of the major upgrades the department has been working on is the resurfacing of courts 1-8 at the Wellness Center. The old courts began to show age and reveal cracks and problems.
One tennis court at Kahite is also planned for conversion into several pickleball courts.
“It’s a major job,” Bradbury said. “They’re basically going to have brand new pickleball courts up here. So, we’re upgrading that to make sure that we keep it state of the art. And one tennis court turns into four pickleball courts. So based on the number up there, there weren’t enough people playing tennis, but lots of people liked to play pickleball.”
