Indoor Pickleball Center Update

Plans for an indoor pickleball center have doubled in size since the article "Indoor Pickleball Center Planned" was published in our May/June issue.

Plans submitted to Visalia Site Plan Review now call for a project covering two properties, and to be done in two phases.

The first phase is for the property at 702 S. Bridge St. in Visalia to be "refurbished and upgraded." The original plan, to construct a new pickleball facility nextdoor (at 730 S. Bridge St.) is now scheduled as the second phase of the project.

"We're trying to be open in six months – if we hit no roadblocks," said John George of J.F. George Enterprises, Inc., the property owner and main force behind the center, about completing the first half of the project.

Current plans call for the entire facility to be open for play in about a year.

The finished center will be "certified professional" and "can handle national tournaments from all over the state," said George.

Before this endeavor, George played a major role in establishing the Greatest Generation Memorial on Mooney Boulevard, as well as in the transfer of ownership of the Fox Visalia Theatre to the city. He is also currently behind the effort to open a new Mearle's Drive-In in Visalia.

Although George has never played pickleball, he was intrigued by the idea of building an indoor center in Visalia.

"It hits a certain market that appeals to me – 60 and over," he explained, adding that the sport is "growing rapidly."

The center will include a small concession stand, as well as a shop selling pickleball equipment such as paddles and gloves. The courts, which will be on non-slip pavement, will be blue and the areas around them will be green.

The costs of pickleball court rentals, and possibly memberships at the center, are yet to be determined.

George is also open to the possibility of expanding the indoor pickleball facility onto the neighboring 60-foot by 240-foot property, which he also owns. The expansion would provide an additional 12 to 14 indoor courts, along with two or three outdoor courts.

"I'm going to grow with the need," he said.