Paint Pickleball Court Lines on the aparto Giovenale Basketball Court
The Issue
Introduction - What is Pickleball?
Hello, my name is Owen Fliess and I am a resident at Aparto Giovenale in Milan, Italy. I have created this petition for the management/executive team at Aparto.
Pickleball is one of the greatest sports ever invented. For those of you who don't know what pickleball is, it is a sport that combines elements of tennis, badminton, and table tennis. It is played on a tennis-style concrete court with paddles made of wood, fiberglass, or carbon fiber and plastic balls with about 40 holes scattered across (take a look at the header image to see what they look like). Pickleball is currently the fastest growing sport in the U.S., with 2023 being the largest year of growth for the sport to date. The reason that pickleball is skyrocketing in popularity so quickly is because of its appeal. It was founded as a sport for the older demographic of individuals, especially those who played tennis for a long time but couldn't anymore due to health issues. Nowadays, the sport has expanded to the college demographic. Pickleball can be picked up by just about anyone and can be learned very quickly, regardless of the players' ages or experience with other racquet sports. I myself know several pickleball players, both recreational and professional, who have become exceptional players without having any prior racquet sport experience. Unlike tennis, a sport that can take years to master, pickleball is much easier and you can become a solid player in just a few months if you play consistently. If you have prior racquet sport experience, your pickleball skills will come much easier, especially if you played tennis or table tennis for an extended period of time (I played tennis for 8 years prior to playing pickleball). The description and rules of pickleball are too extensive to share in this petition, so please take a look at these links from the official USA Pickleball website to learn more about the sport.
About Pickleball: https://usapickleball.org/what-is-pickleball/
Rules and Regulations (short version): https://usapickleball.org/what-is-pickleball/official-rules/rules-summary/
Rules and Regulations (full official rulebook): https://usapickleball.org/docs/USA-Pickleball-Official-Rulebook-2024-v1.pdf
Not only is pickleball easy to play, but it also has several other benefits. One, the community surrounding the sport is incredible. If you have played pickleball before, then you know what I'm talking about. Some of the greatest and longest lasting friendships are made on the pickleball courts, and I for one have met many of my closest friends through pickleball. You will get to know your teammates and opponents very well and become good friends with them. If you join a pickleball club, you will also get the chance to meet people of all ages and find potential teammates for tournaments and other events.
Two, the sport has an extensive list of health benefits. Take a look at these articles from Apple and CNBC to read about the health benefits of playing pickleball.
The Idea
With that all being said, I believe that the basketball court at Aparto would be a perfect place for a pickleball court. It is possible to paint the lines of a pickleball court over a basketball court without disrupting the visibility of the basketball court lines during play. I know this from experience playing on a pickleball court that was painted over a basketball court, as well as playing basketball on a court that had pickleball lines on it. Here are some pictures of the Aparto Giovenale basketball court.
I have not physically measured the dimensions of the Aparto basketball court, but I believe that a pickleball court would fit there. The dimensions and measurements for the standard pickleball court are:
- The court shall be a rectangle measuring 20 feet (6.10 m) wide and 44 feet (13.41 m) long for both singles and doubles matches.
- Court measurements shall be made to the outside of the perimeter and non-volley zone lines. All lines should be 2 inches (5.08 cm) wide and the same color, clearly contrasting with the color of the playing surface.
- The minimum playing surface area measures 30 feet (9.14 m) wide and 60 feet (18.29 m) long. A 10-foot (3.05 m) surrounding margin measures 40 feet (12.19 m) by 64 feet (19.51 m).
- The size of a regulation pickleball net is 22 feet (6.71m) wide, 36 inches (91.44 cm) high at the posts, and 34 inches (86.36 cm) high at the center.
How Would Play Work?
In terms of play time, the court would be available to book at certain hourly intervals throughout the day to allow for basketball to be played. Whenever the pickleball court is not booked, and no one is playing basketball, either pickleball or basketball may be played. However, if people wish to play pickleball and notice people playing basketball, then they cannot play unless they had booked the court for pickleball beforehand. The same goes for basketball players. If people who were playing pickleball had previously booked the court for it, and basketball players showed up to play, then the basketball players would need to wait for the pickleball players’ court reservation to end before they could use the court.
Regardless, the one thing that some people do not like about pickleball is how noisy it is. Because the ball is made of hard plastic and gets contacted by a hard paddle surface, hitting a pickleball is much louder than hitting a tennis ball with a tennis racquet, shuttlecock/birdie with a badminton racquet, or a table tennis ball with a table tennis paddle. Therefore, if pickleball is to be approved at Aparto, it would only be available to be played before 10:00 PM. After 10:00 PM, pickleball is forbidden to accommodate those wishing to go to sleep earlier.
Costs
I'm not sure how much it costs to paint pickleball lines on a preexisting basketball court, but from what I've researched it will cost less than $1,000 (~920 Euro). In addition, a portable pickleball net that can be moved (e.g. with wheels) or disassembled if basketball is to be played will also need to be purchased. Those can range between $100-$400 (~92-370 Euro). If the students wishing to use the court can come to an agreement, we can split the costs of getting the lines painted and the net. We would also likely need to purchase some paddles and balls to play with for those who don't already own them. The maximum number of people that can play at one time is 4, so we would need to purchase at least 4 paddles for residents to use. Depending on the quality and price of the paddles to be purchased, it would be beneficial to have backups in case some sustain damage over time. On Amazon, there are several sets of 4 pickleball paddles that you can buy for $50 (~46 Euro) or less each.
On another note, we would also need to purchase pickleballs. Because pickleballs are made of plastic, they crack over time. The duration of a pickleball’s playable life depends on how often it is used, the strength with which it is being hit, and the conditions of play (e.g. temperature). For example, if people are playing in colder temperatures (e.g. <40 degrees Fahrenheit / 4 degrees Celsius), a pickleball may crack quicker than if they were playing in warmer temperatures. Once a ball cracks, it becomes unplayable and must be replaced. That is why it would be beneficial to buy a lot of balls to ensure that residents have a sufficient supply of balls for a long time. There is a pack of 36 Franklin X-40 pickleballs, some of the highest quality balls, on Amazon for $90 (~83 Euro).
Conclusion
Overall, I believe that the addition of a pickleball court to Aparto would be a great investment. It would allow residents and their guests to get to know other individuals in the complex and improve their pickleball skills at the same time. I and the other students at Aparto Giovenale thank you for taking the time to read and consider this petition. We hope to be able to play pickleball at Aparto and bring one of America's best sports to Milan now and in the future.
Best,
Owen Fliess
Aparto Giovenale Resident
Exchange Student from the United States
Pickleball Player
Petition Closed
The Issue
Introduction - What is Pickleball?
Hello, my name is Owen Fliess and I am a resident at Aparto Giovenale in Milan, Italy. I have created this petition for the management/executive team at Aparto.
Pickleball is one of the greatest sports ever invented. For those of you who don't know what pickleball is, it is a sport that combines elements of tennis, badminton, and table tennis. It is played on a tennis-style concrete court with paddles made of wood, fiberglass, or carbon fiber and plastic balls with about 40 holes scattered across (take a look at the header image to see what they look like). Pickleball is currently the fastest growing sport in the U.S., with 2023 being the largest year of growth for the sport to date. The reason that pickleball is skyrocketing in popularity so quickly is because of its appeal. It was founded as a sport for the older demographic of individuals, especially those who played tennis for a long time but couldn't anymore due to health issues. Nowadays, the sport has expanded to the college demographic. Pickleball can be picked up by just about anyone and can be learned very quickly, regardless of the players' ages or experience with other racquet sports. I myself know several pickleball players, both recreational and professional, who have become exceptional players without having any prior racquet sport experience. Unlike tennis, a sport that can take years to master, pickleball is much easier and you can become a solid player in just a few months if you play consistently. If you have prior racquet sport experience, your pickleball skills will come much easier, especially if you played tennis or table tennis for an extended period of time (I played tennis for 8 years prior to playing pickleball). The description and rules of pickleball are too extensive to share in this petition, so please take a look at these links from the official USA Pickleball website to learn more about the sport.
About Pickleball: https://usapickleball.org/what-is-pickleball/
Rules and Regulations (short version): https://usapickleball.org/what-is-pickleball/official-rules/rules-summary/
Rules and Regulations (full official rulebook): https://usapickleball.org/docs/USA-Pickleball-Official-Rulebook-2024-v1.pdf
Not only is pickleball easy to play, but it also has several other benefits. One, the community surrounding the sport is incredible. If you have played pickleball before, then you know what I'm talking about. Some of the greatest and longest lasting friendships are made on the pickleball courts, and I for one have met many of my closest friends through pickleball. You will get to know your teammates and opponents very well and become good friends with them. If you join a pickleball club, you will also get the chance to meet people of all ages and find potential teammates for tournaments and other events.
Two, the sport has an extensive list of health benefits. Take a look at these articles from Apple and CNBC to read about the health benefits of playing pickleball.
The Idea
With that all being said, I believe that the basketball court at Aparto would be a perfect place for a pickleball court. It is possible to paint the lines of a pickleball court over a basketball court without disrupting the visibility of the basketball court lines during play. I know this from experience playing on a pickleball court that was painted over a basketball court, as well as playing basketball on a court that had pickleball lines on it. Here are some pictures of the Aparto Giovenale basketball court.
I have not physically measured the dimensions of the Aparto basketball court, but I believe that a pickleball court would fit there. The dimensions and measurements for the standard pickleball court are:
- The court shall be a rectangle measuring 20 feet (6.10 m) wide and 44 feet (13.41 m) long for both singles and doubles matches.
- Court measurements shall be made to the outside of the perimeter and non-volley zone lines. All lines should be 2 inches (5.08 cm) wide and the same color, clearly contrasting with the color of the playing surface.
- The minimum playing surface area measures 30 feet (9.14 m) wide and 60 feet (18.29 m) long. A 10-foot (3.05 m) surrounding margin measures 40 feet (12.19 m) by 64 feet (19.51 m).
- The size of a regulation pickleball net is 22 feet (6.71m) wide, 36 inches (91.44 cm) high at the posts, and 34 inches (86.36 cm) high at the center.
How Would Play Work?
In terms of play time, the court would be available to book at certain hourly intervals throughout the day to allow for basketball to be played. Whenever the pickleball court is not booked, and no one is playing basketball, either pickleball or basketball may be played. However, if people wish to play pickleball and notice people playing basketball, then they cannot play unless they had booked the court for pickleball beforehand. The same goes for basketball players. If people who were playing pickleball had previously booked the court for it, and basketball players showed up to play, then the basketball players would need to wait for the pickleball players’ court reservation to end before they could use the court.
Regardless, the one thing that some people do not like about pickleball is how noisy it is. Because the ball is made of hard plastic and gets contacted by a hard paddle surface, hitting a pickleball is much louder than hitting a tennis ball with a tennis racquet, shuttlecock/birdie with a badminton racquet, or a table tennis ball with a table tennis paddle. Therefore, if pickleball is to be approved at Aparto, it would only be available to be played before 10:00 PM. After 10:00 PM, pickleball is forbidden to accommodate those wishing to go to sleep earlier.
Costs
I'm not sure how much it costs to paint pickleball lines on a preexisting basketball court, but from what I've researched it will cost less than $1,000 (~920 Euro). In addition, a portable pickleball net that can be moved (e.g. with wheels) or disassembled if basketball is to be played will also need to be purchased. Those can range between $100-$400 (~92-370 Euro). If the students wishing to use the court can come to an agreement, we can split the costs of getting the lines painted and the net. We would also likely need to purchase some paddles and balls to play with for those who don't already own them. The maximum number of people that can play at one time is 4, so we would need to purchase at least 4 paddles for residents to use. Depending on the quality and price of the paddles to be purchased, it would be beneficial to have backups in case some sustain damage over time. On Amazon, there are several sets of 4 pickleball paddles that you can buy for $50 (~46 Euro) or less each.
On another note, we would also need to purchase pickleballs. Because pickleballs are made of plastic, they crack over time. The duration of a pickleball’s playable life depends on how often it is used, the strength with which it is being hit, and the conditions of play (e.g. temperature). For example, if people are playing in colder temperatures (e.g. <40 degrees Fahrenheit / 4 degrees Celsius), a pickleball may crack quicker than if they were playing in warmer temperatures. Once a ball cracks, it becomes unplayable and must be replaced. That is why it would be beneficial to buy a lot of balls to ensure that residents have a sufficient supply of balls for a long time. There is a pack of 36 Franklin X-40 pickleballs, some of the highest quality balls, on Amazon for $90 (~83 Euro).
Conclusion
Overall, I believe that the addition of a pickleball court to Aparto would be a great investment. It would allow residents and their guests to get to know other individuals in the complex and improve their pickleball skills at the same time. I and the other students at Aparto Giovenale thank you for taking the time to read and consider this petition. We hope to be able to play pickleball at Aparto and bring one of America's best sports to Milan now and in the future.
Best,
Owen Fliess
Aparto Giovenale Resident
Exchange Student from the United States
Pickleball Player
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Petition created on January 28, 2024