SAVE LOS ANGELES TENNIS COURTS

To the City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks; City Council and Neighborhood Council Members,

We the undersigned tennis players, recreationists, and community stakeholders urge the City of Los Angeles to halt the conversion of existing public tennis courts to pickleball courts.

Below are several key reasons why we advocate for the preservation of our tennis courts:

High Demand: Converting tennis courts into pickleball facilities may seem like a convenient solution for one growing sport, but it would displace tennis players citywide, leading to increased overflow and longer wait times at nearby courts. During peak hours – mornings, evenings, and weekends – publicly accessible and affordable tennis courts are already in limited supply.
Preserving an Olympic Sport: The 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles will notably feature tennis, not pickleball. It is vital that the city supports and preserves this Olympic sport at the recreational level. We would like to see the city make plans for improved maintenance and preservation of all tennis courts in Los Angeles, for both the upcoming Games and for current and future generations.
Noise Concerns: Replacing tennis courts with pickleball would increase noise pollution. According to one finding, pickleball “register[s] a decibel level of ~70 dBA at 100 feet from the court,” whereas “tennis is closer to 40 dBA.” In the same study, pickleball, with its “high pitch [...] frequency of ~1.2k Hz,” is likened to “the beeping noise from a garbage truck backing up.” (1)
A Balanced Approach to Recreation: It is essential that the city continues to support a variety of recreational activities. While we acknowledge the need for pickleball courts to accommodate the sport’s growing popularity, we encourage the city to explore alternative solutions, such as building new pickleball courts, or reactivating decommissioned (possibly indoor) city-owned spaces, to ensure both tennis and pickleball enthusiasts have access to the facilities they need. Expanding pickleball should not come at the expense of tennis, as this fosters unnecessary competition and tension between player communities.

We represent a portion of the growing number of stakeholders opposed to the conversion of tennis courts into pickleball courts. With this petition, we seek your support in preserving and strengthening the sport we love, and securing its place in our city’s public parks.

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(1) Dent, Mark. "One Man’s Quest to Make Pickleball Quiet." The Hustle, 3 June 2023, https://thehustle.co/one-mans-quest-to-make-pickleball-quiet.