FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
September 2, 2025
CITY OF BOISE SETTLES LAWSUIT, PICKLEBALL COURTS AT TWO CITY PARKS TRANSITIONING BACK TO TENNIS ONLY
Following a legal settlement, Boise Parks and Recreation has closed the pickleball courts at Willow Lane Park and Manitou Park. The courts at both locations will transition back to tennis only, per the terms of the agreed upon settlement (a copy of which is attached for additional details). The pickleball courts at Manitou Park are included in the city’s decision due to similar neighborhood concerns and proximity to residents.
The courts at Willow Lane Park were originally converted from tennis to pickleball courts in 2018. The popularity of pickleball has grown exponentially across the country since 2019, and the desire for places to play rapidly accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Boise, like other cities, addressed this increased demand by converting certain courts from tennis to pickleball. Unfortunately, some of these court conversions have not been as successful as our team hoped, and one such conversion led to litigation.
“The decision to close popular pickleball courts at two park locations has not been made lightly and comes after years of sincere attempts to find a compromise for everyone involved,” said Boise Parks and Recreation Director Doug Holloway. “Our team is working on a set of pickleball court siting guidelines to aid the placement of future courts within our park system, and we will continue to look for opportunities to meet the recreational needs of all users, including pickleball players.”
The City of Boise made the difficult decision to settle the case in order to avoid ongoing litigation costs and keep its focus on serving residents and park users of all kinds across Boise. This outcome follows more than two years of negotiations, compromise proposals, pilot programs, and good-faith efforts by Boise Parks and Recreation to balance the needs of neighbors with the citywide demand for pickleball play (details of these proposals are included in the Tort Claim filed by the Plaintiffs, a copy of which is also attached). Additional attempts to resolve this issue outside of court included limiting hours of play at both court locations and closing the courts three days during the week. Boise Parks and Recreation also added sound barriers at Willow Lane Park to mitigate noise. Ultimately, these efforts were unsuccessful in preventing legal action.
The courts at both park locations are now closed for construction as they transition back to tennis only. This timing was based on contractor availability and the need to complete the court transition before December as outlined in the agreed upon settlement. Boise Parks and Recreation is continuing to look for opportunities to add pickleball courts at park locations to meet demand for the sport, while keeping the results of this settlement in mind.
To read the department’s settlement statement in full, click here.
For more information on other places to play pickleball at City of Boise parks, please visit the Boise Parks and Recreation pickleball webpage.
