City hosts grand opening for new outdoor basketball, pickleball and tennis courts

by Dan Holland

The Broadview Heights Recreation Department hosted a grand opening ceremony for the new outdoor courts on city campus on the evening of Sept. 28.

The event, which featured a ribbon cutting, refreshments and pickleball giveaways, was a recognition of the full opening of six pickleball courts, two tennis courts and one basketball court near the entrance to the city’s recreation center.

“We’ve had tennis for years up at The Fields, but those courts were falling apart,” said Assistant Parks and Recreation Director Ryan Meyer. “So, we had talked about building something on the city campus for a long time, and the mayor said, ‘Hey, let’s put them right here on campus, as we have the room and space.’ We figured we would split it up between basketball, pickleball and tennis; something for everyone, as we knew we needed all three of those.”

“For this to be right here is part of a larger move to feature more athletic facilities on campus,” he added. “These courts have been soft-opened for a while, and we’ve had a lot of people here; with them being packed on nice weather nights. We opened the basketball court late last year, and that has been very well-used.”

Sophia Nesterchuk, an instructor with Over the Net Tennis, was in attendance along with a few young students.

“We do tennis lessons for children from ages 4-11, and we do all sorts of children’s activities,” said Nesterchuk. “We came out tonight for the grand opening. It’s been great, as the people in the community have been so nice. I love the new courts; they’re really beautiful.”

Broadview Heights resident Louise Gorman made use of the pickleball courts, along with co-players Andrea Boykin, Karen Tracy and Steve Magic.

“We play here in the mornings at 9 a.m. almost every day,” said Gorman. “We love it and we like that it’s nearby. The new courts are very nice.”

Brecksville residents Kim Campbell and Bruce Noggle, who were both instrumental in helping to establish a pickleball program in Brecksville in 2022, attended the event. Both make use of courts in Brecksville, Broadview Heights, Independence and Richfield.

“We have a women’s group that plays every Wednesday night, and we have played here a couple of times,” said Campbell. “It’s a beautiful layout that they have here, as they put a lot of thought into putting fences in between courts to keep the balls out of the other courts, plus the windscreens all around and the gates in between the courts.”

“I play a lot in Broadview Heights, as they do an excellent job of preparing the courts in the winter, and this is a fantastic facility they built on the campus,” said Noggle. “The fact that it has six courts gives plenty of space to play and rotate in to get an opportunity to play, and it’s convenient, as I just live five minutes away. Broadview Heights does a great job with their recreational facilities.”

“We have people of all ages playing pickleball, along with a brand-new basketball court and tennis courts, so we can have more facilities and better space for our residents,” said Mayor Sam Alai. “The facilities and amenities that we had needed to be amped up a bit, and this saves space for parking over at The Fields. We now have better courts in a much nicer atmosphere here; it’s what our residents demanded, and we want to give them what they want.”

Photo caption: Assistant Parks & Recreation Director Ryan Meyer readies to cut a ribbon during the grand opening of the city’s new outdoor athletic courts along with Mayor Sam Alai, members of city council, recreation department personnel and pickleball player Rich Abston (center). Photos by Dan Holland.