Lakes Pickleball Complex -Project Summary

Proposal:
Four post-tensioned concrete pickleball courts will be constructed in
Speier Park, City of Okoboji, for the estimated cost of $240,000.

Overview:
A group of enthusiastic pickleball players from the Iowa Great Lakes
area have organized a steering committee called “Lakes Pickleball”.
This group is actively raising funds to build a free, public, dedicated
outdoor pickleball complex.

Background Information:
The game of pickleball (a sport played on a badminton sized court
with a paddle and wiffle ball), was created in Washington state in 1965. Pickleball is the fastest growing
sport in the country with more than 3.5 million participants in the U.S. Pickleball is normally played in
a doubles format (allowing 4 players to be on one court at a time), but singles is occasionally also
played. It is a sport that appeals to participants of all ages, and is unique in that players of different
ages/skill levels can play together. The USA Pickleball Association estimates there are over 15,000
courts in the U.S. Last year, over 1,000 new facilities were opened to play pickleball nationwide.

Why?
Currently, the Iowa Great Lakes has no dedicated, public pickleball courts. The current option is to play
indoors at the Spirit Lake YMCA, where basketball courts are temporarily converted to pickleball courts
on weekday afternoons.

Lakes Pickleball envisions that this new 4-court complex will be used for future tournaments, clinics,
leagues, and open play. These courts will not only benefit local residents who wish to play pickleball, but
also add another attraction to the Lakes Area which helps local businesses and hotels, and drives
economic development.

Why Speier Park?

The City of Okoboji has agreed to provide a site in Speier Park. Speier Park has adequate existing
parking and restroom facilities. It provides other options for family members such as a picnic shelter,
playground equipment, and basketball and tennis courts. The location has adequate space for future
expansion. The park is easily accessible from highway 71 and is centrally located.

Project Management:
All donations will be made directly to the City of Okoboji. Lakes Pickleball chose this method of
handling donations to allow possible tax deductibility for donors. The City of Okoboji has agreed to act
as a repository and has set up a separate pickleball donation account. Any excess funds will remain in
this account to be used for future pickleball facility improvements and equipment. The City will handle
all management of the project including design, quotes, construction and payment.

Maintenance:
The City of Okoboji has agreed to manage the complex after it is built, including all maintenance,
insurance, etc. This will be similar to the maintenance of the adjacent tennis courts.

Status:
The City of Okoboji has agreed to pay the engineering design fee of $20,500 contingent upon sufficient
funds being raised to construct the courts. Fundraising started in July of 2019. As of September 1, over
$90,000 in donations/pledges has been received. Community support has been broad as the size of the
donations has ranged from $20 to $20,000.

The City of Okoboji has designated Beck Engineering to provide project design and construction
management. Initial design is scheduled to begin in September of 2019. We are optimistic that we can
have playable courts in 2020.

The Future:
Initially, court play will be unscheduled, offering free play to anyone at any time, similar to the adjacent
tennis courts in Speier Park. When courts are full, court availability is generally different from tennis, as
newly arriving players typically place their paddles in a row along the fence to work their way onto the
court as games end. As the number of players increases, many pickleball courts adopt a scheduling
system where open social play, classes, “skill level” play and court reservations are offered.

As pickleball becomes more established, many options are available to expand play: leagues can
organize and play weekly, Spirit Lake and Okoboji Schools can teach/practice pickleball with 16
students involved at a time, volunteer instructors can teach the sport, pickleball camps can allow people
to become better players and area pickleball tournaments can be offered.

Lakes Pickleball thanks you for your interest.