Three Rivers Pickleball Association secures final funding for court expansion

On Monday afternoon at Armstrong Park, representatives from the Three Rivers Area Community Foundation, City of Three Rivers, and Three Rivers Pickleball Association gathered to celebrate securing the final funds needed to expand the city’s pickleball facilities.

The $5,000 micro-grant from the Three Rivers Area Community Foundation closes a $3,700 shortfall the association faced in its fundraising efforts. The total project cost is about $170,000 and will add three new courts to the existing two. The expansion will cover concrete, painting, fencing, and nets, with hopes of boosting membership and hosting tournaments to bring in additional revenue. Ultimately, the association hopes to grow the site to six courts in the coming years.

Other major contributors include AEP ($45,000), the City of Three Rivers ($70,000), Three Rivers Pickleball Association members ($37,000), Gary Dodd ($10,000), and the Kalamazoo Pickleball Association ($7,500).

“Our interest is to have some tournaments and do some clinics. And it is difficult to do tournaments with only two courts, so our goal is to have at least four. We’ll soon have five, and that means we can start generating tournaments and bringing in funds for the park and for us as well,” said association organizer Bill Risma.

Construction is expected to begin within the next two weeks, starting with excavation and drainage work by Roberts Brothers. The cement is scheduled to be poured the day after Labor Day and should be finished in less than two weeks. Painting, however, may not be completed until spring time due to the curing time needed for the concrete.

The association still hopes to raise an additional $25,000-$30,000 for accessories such as benches, wind nets, and a sidewalk leading to the courts. Risma believes visible progress will inspire more donations from businesses and residents.

“We still have some accessories that we don’t have money for,” Risma said. “Once construction begins and people see the activity, they’ll notice, for example, that we don’t have a sidewalk, and we don’t want people walking on wet grass and tracking it onto the courts.”

If all goes as planned, the new courts will be ready for play by spring — in time for what Risma hopes will be the association’s inaugural tournament.

Maxwell Knauer is a staff writer for Watershed Voice.

Editor’s Note: This article was edited at 12:05 p.m. Thursday, August 14 to reflect that the $5,000 micro-grant was awarded by the Three Rivers Area Community Foundation, not the City of Three Rivers, and to include a list of other major contributors to the project.