(WSVN) - Pickleball is a game that’s becoming very popular with some people who choose to live in condo associations. But there’s one problem — it’s noisy, very noisy. That’s why one woman called Help Me Howard with Patrick Fraser.
This is a ball.
This is a pickle
And this is pickleball.
Linda Waldman, annoyed by pickleball racket: “It’s a wonderful game. I love the pickleball players. Most of them are my friends.”
Pickleball is a relatively new sport played at Wynmoor in Coconut Creek by people who aren’t quite as agile as they used to be.
Linda Waldman: “This is a retirement village for 55 and over, and people are now able to, that couldn’t play tennis, can now play pickleball.”
Which is why two of the tennis courts near Linda’s condo were converted into eight small pickleball courts.
Linda Waldman: “Which gives you 16 people on a former tennis court, which is 32 people on those two courts. It’s a very noisy game, unfortunately.”
Thirty-two people taking turns playing all day with a hard ball and a hard racket creating quite a racket.
Linda Waldman: “So there is a ‘pong’ not also from the racket, but also when it hits the ground. Ponging and screaming. It’s a very enthusiastic game. The people love it.”
Linda and Paul hear the noise from their condo starting at 8 a.m. The people at the pool also are complaining about what Paul calls Chinese water torture.
Linda Waldman: “You cannot relax by the pool. You can sit by the pool, but you can’t relax.”
Linda has a suggestion — move the pickleball courts away from the condos by swapping them with tennis courts that are further away, but some residents want to keep these pickleball courts and add more courts.
Linda Waldman: “They want lights to open it up at night as well. It would really be a horrible thing for us.”
Linda has no problem with her friends playing pickleball.
But don’t play this close to her condo.
Linda Waldman: “I can’t live with this constant ‘pong, pong, pong’ every morning. Do I have the right to live here in a quiet environment?”
Well Howard, what’s Linda’s answer?
Howard Finkelstein, 7 News Legal Expert: “Because it’s a new sport, there have not been many court rulings about pickleball, so you rely on the law governing nuisances, which says while Linda may need to put up with some noise, she does not have to deal with loud noise all day long. If she went to court, I think a judge would force them to stop or move the pickleball courts, but she probably won’t have to do that because this is Wynmoor, and they have a reputation of trying to work things out to make everyone happy.”
At Wynmoor, there are 5,260 units, and if every association president was as easy to work with as Jackie Railey, our job would be much simpler.
Railey said she wants to find a solution.
They are forming a committee to come up options to cut down the noise or move the pickleball courts.
As Railey put it, “We need to do something.”
Linda Waldman: “It’s definitely an imposition on our life, absolutely.”
Absolutely a headache for Linda and Paul, and maybe a hit on their wallet as well.
Linda Waldman: “A real estate agent mentioned to us that our values will be going down because of the noise.”
There is a lesson here for any association thinking about adding trendy pickleball courts. It’s noisy. With 32 people playing at the same time, it’s a real racket, so if you put them in, make sure it’s not too close to houses or condos.
Found yourself in a real pickle? Ready to quiet the racket? We know how to “Wynmoor.” Play ball with us to see if we can net a victory for you.
CONTACT HELP ME HOWARD:
Email: helpmehoward@wsvn.com
Reporter: Patrick Fraser at pfraser@wsvn.com
Miami-Dade: 305-953-WSVN
Broward: 954-761-WSVN
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