Our Mission
To build a centrally located, indoor pickleball facility to service the people of the Niagara Region year-round and provide a state-of-the-art venue that would draw recreational and competitive players and spectators from near and far for pickleball leagues, camps and tournaments at the local, provincial, national, and international levels.
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The Opportunity
This page is a shortened version of our full proposal. Please click on the cover image to download a PDF copy of the latest version of our full proposal.
There is an incredible opportunity here for the Niagara Region to become a national leader by building a world class venue for pickleball that would rival any existing facility in Canada. With the Niagara Region already having so much to offer in the tourism and sports tourism sectors, adding a brand new pickleball facility to the long list of reasons to come here would put us at the top of the list.
Other cities are already thinking about expanding their current facilities and a number of them currently offer annual pickleball tournaments – London, Waterloo, St. Thomas, and Kingston to name a few.
From what we have seen at these events, their setups are less than ideal. With most tournaments being run at multi-use venues, most of these have no or limited spectator seating, multiple court markings, use portable nets and improper court layouts that cause people to interrupt play with their comings and goings and are limited to times available in between all other sports.
In our estimation, the Niagara Region would have to move quickly to build a state-of-the-art facility and become the place to play pickleball in Ontario and Canada.
Stats from Pickleball Canada’s 2022 Survey
“The survey results showed that 8% of Canadian households report at least one household member plays pickleball once per month. By extrapolating the data, this indicates that there are now one million individual Canadians playing pickleball at least once a month, with 45% playing four or more times/month. When analyzing the results from a similar survey conducted in January 2020, Pickleball Canada estimated there were 350,000 pickleball players in Canada. The 2022 survey indicates a near tripling of the number of pickleball players in Canada in two years.”
Advantages of an Indoor Pickleball Facility
Guaranteed Play
Not affected by sun, wind, heat, cold, rain or insects.
Socialization
A place to meet, socialize and have fun.
Court Condition
Long lasting, free from cracks, debris and vandalism.
Other Sports
Ability to offer other sports and programs in off areas.
Our Goals
We have a 3 phase approach that we are working on to build a state-of-the-art facility in the future
that would draw in the top pickleball players, trainers and spectators from around the region, province, country and globally.
Phase 1 – Year 1 – Setting the STage
The plans for the first year of this committee are to setup all the necessary infrastructure needed to operate a Non-Profit Organization which includes determining the Board of Directors ,incorporation, setting up bank accounts, determining membership, and more.
We also will be creating proposals and presenting these to different local politicians to help spread the word for the need of a facility like this and try to drum up a temporary location to house a minimum of 7 courts.
This location will be used as a proof of concept for the larger facility we would like to build in the future.
Phase 2 – Year 2 – Proof of COncept
Our second year will see the operation of a fully functioning indoor facility with a minimum of 7 courts located centrally to the Niagara Region. This facility will feature open play and skilled sessions, training, camps and tournaments.
During this time we will also be expanding our reach to look for investors and/or partners to finance and find a suitable location for the larger facility, increase our membership and search for volunteers to help run the facility.
Phase 3 – Year 3+ – Building the Dream
During this phase we will be working with our local politicians, partners and investors to bring the state-of-the-art facility to life. While we have a dream of a facility with every amenity possible, we do have a range of suitable facility types we are looking to build ranging from 20 courts in a tent structure with proper fencing, lighting and climate control, all the way up to a top-of-the-line facility with 24 courts, 2 championship courts with seating for 300 to 500 people, a PA system, training area, restaurant/snack bar and pro shop. Of course this all depends on the funding available from our local, provincial and federal governments as well as investors and partners.
These are a concept put together by our committee to show what a dream facility could look like.
We would like to see this venue featuring many, if not all of the following amenities:
- A large, climate-controlled facility with high ceilings and bright, energy efficient LED lighting.
- 20 to 24 professionally finished courts with a cushioned acrylic court system and permanent nets.
- 2 Championship Courts with spectator seating for 300 to 500 people.
- Proper fencing for self-contained courts to ensure no interference from other players, spectators or errant balls.
- Large, wheelchair accessible walkways and entrances to the courts.
- All courts would meet the Pickleball Ontario, Pickleball Canada and USAP requirements for sanctioned tournaments and events.
- Change rooms complete with sinks, toilets, showers, benches, and lockers.
- A proper PA/sound system and video screens for broadcasting important information on a regular basis and when hosting large events with large numbers of people.
- A high-performance training area with fitness facility, ball machine, dink area, drill wall, whiteboards, seating, and video review system.
- A video monitoring system of all courts for security, training, and competition purposes.
- A conference room that doubles as Competition HQ with access to video feeds of all courts, the PA system, high speed WIFI and large boards for posting information.
- Parking for up to 1000 people.
- Multiple water stations around the courts.
- An elevated seating area and viewing platform with an area for vendor booths.
- A pro shop with facility merchandise, pickleball gear and more.
- A snack bar/restaurant/pub for players and spectators.
- Multiple locations for advertising spaces spread throughout the facility -fences, walls, courts, video system, etc.
Why Pickleball?
Simply put, pickleball is the fastest growing sport in North America. It is in the news everywhere and suddenly we are seeing it on TV, in shows & movies, Sports Illustrated articles, YouTube videos, Facebook streams, Twitter feeds and even right in our own neighbourhood. Even several cruise ship lines have created pickleball courts onboard due to the high demand for this sport. We have seen local clubs grow from 30 to 80 people, another from 50 to 300 members and recreational sessions go from 4 to 48 players in a year. The number of courts in the region went from 6 to 36 in 3 years and is still climbing steadily.
Pickleball Canada is looking into getting the sport of pickleball officially included as an event into the next Canada Games and the Niagara Games competitions.
Why is pickleball growing so fast? Because it is easier to play for all ages, requires far less equipment to start playing and is far more enjoyable on smaller courts than tennis for a larger age and skill range. Above all else, it is an amazingly social game that is fun and exciting while at the same time being challenging. Not to mention that pickleball is a great way to exercise and adds to the social well-being of the community.
While the game of pickleball has typically been more popular with older people and retirees, the last 5 years have seen the sport changing demographics as younger people make up the largest growing portion of the sport and the demand for more courts is unprecedented.
To put that in perspective, here is a list of local communities who have already jumped on the pickleball bandwagon with outdoor courts in recent years:
- Hamilton – 12 Dedicated Pickleball Courts
- Stoney Creek – 12 Dedicated Pickleball Courts
- Virgil – 6 Dedicated Pickleball Courts
- Welland – 12 Pickleball Courts, 6 Dedicated
- Grimsby – 4 Dedicated Pickleball Courts
- Pelham – 6 Dedicated Pickleball Courts (coming soon)
There are a number of other cities and towns in the Niagara Region that have shared tennis/pickleball courts or are planning on putting in outdoor pickleball courts as well.
Other cities are already thinking about expanding their current facilities and a number of them currently offer annual pickleball tournaments – London, Waterloo, St. Thomas, Tecumseh and Kingston to name a few.
From what we have seen at these events, their setups are less than ideal. With most tournaments being run at multi-use venues, most of these have no or limited spectator seating, multiple court markings, use portable nets and improper court layouts that cause people to interrupt play with their comings and goings and are limited to times available in between all other sports.
In our estimation, the Niagara Region would have to move quickly to build a state-of-the-art facility and become the place to play pickleball in Ontario and Canada.
Contact Us
If you would like to discuss our endeavour, have any questions, would like to volunteer or donate, please give us a call at 289-897-9273 or send us an email at info@niagaraindoorpickleball.com.