Bound to Happen? Town Council in Singapore Bans Pickleball at Community Court
The Holland-Bukit Panjang GRC Town Council has banned pickleball in a community hardcourt supposedly for badminton only.
Speaking to Singaporean online site Mothership, the Holland-Bukit Panjang Town Council bared that the decision to ban pickleball in said court is due to residents complaining about what the council described as “sharp repetitive” noise during pickleball matches.
“While we recognise the growing popularity of the sport, pickleball generates sharp repetitive sounds that can significantly affect nearby households, particularly in densely populated areas,” said the council, who added that they’re also just looking after the safety of players as playing in areas not designed for pickleball might pose safety risks not only to picklers but also to the residents.
“Our priority is to maintain a safe, restful, and harmonious environment for all,” the town council added.
As an alternative, the Holland-Bukit Panjang Town Council encouraged pickleball players to play in pickleball facilities. The council, in particular, mentioned courts managed and operated by SportSG and ActiveSG as they are specifically designed to minimise disturbance and ensure player safety.
Meanwhile, a certain Douglas Chow, presumably a resident of Holland-Bukit, posted on Facebook a sign announcing the banning of pickleball on what is supposedly a badminton-only court and described the ban as something “bound to happen.”
“Bound to happen, sooner or later… at courts that are very close to nearby flats. Not even restricting the hours, but a complete ban,” Chow wrote on his post. “The tok tok tok is not music to everyone’s ears, esp [sic] folks who need to rest or sleep. There are silent balls that I have and players can use, but they are more expensive and dun quite have the “feel” of the regular plastic ones. So most players will not even consider this alternative… oh well… they’ll have to live with the ban at this particular court then.”
The ban imposed by the Holland-Bukit Town Council is the latest in a series of crackdowns on pickleball in Singapore, where quite a few residents have been complaining about the noise being made during pickleball matches. The Ang Mo Kio Town Council and Mountbatten authorities, for instance, have adjusted the playing hours in community courts near residential areas after receiving numerous noise complaints.
These complaints and the response of local authorities are something to keep an eye on in a country that is starting to really fall in love hard for pickleball. Putting it simply, this seeming cat-and-mouse game between pickleball players and some residents could hurt pickleball’s steady growth in Singapore, which is a shame because bit by bit, the Lion City is turning into Pickleball City, too.
