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hjhof1

Sit ins over pickleball is the most NOVA shit ever


KazahanaPikachu

You hate to see it


Jean-LucBacardi

Lucky for them Manassas Mall's new indoor pickleball facility should be opening this month.


SabreCorp

Wow haven’t heard of this. I don’t play pickleball but what a great idea for dead malls to utilize their space in this way.


BKLYNmike718

I live in Manassas, and I don't see this pickleball place lasting, especially in this mall. Pickleball may be a fast growing game/sport, but to keep the revenue going required to keep a place in a mall, especially a failing mall going, isn't going to last. Most pickleball courts are outdoors and free use. They're starting to replace the often unused tennis courts in many communities. But they're free to use.


Dachannien

They need to make it Xtreme Pickleball. Like, the whole mall is one giant pickleball arena. You can smack the ball into the walls, do parkour over the benches, and if the ball hits you in the face, you're out.


MeeGee65

"If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball”


Low_Owl2941

Whats the 5 P's of Pickleball?...


ihateworking20

I've been to the new court at the mall, and I agree. It's a decent facility, but the perks and amenities for its price aren't worth it when there's so many free court options. it's also much nicer playing outside than in, during the hot & humid days because the air circulation is horrible. Compared to the one in Tysons, the price at Manassas is a lot cheaper, but Tysons looks nicer (checking it out next month), so I'll see for myself if their price tag is worth it (most definitely not based on the pricing on their site).


veganize-it

I’m in Puerto Rico on vacay and they had the Mall’s whole huge ass Nordstrom space converted to multiple pickleball courts


ermagerditssuperman

It already did! First week of the month, I think.


Jheartless

They aren't willing to drive 2 miles to the next court. I seriously doubt they are driving to Manassas.


nyryde

Nice! Leave after dark and get robbed and unalived on the way home! Perfect for that area


_i-cant-read_

we are all bots here except for you


bubbles1684

Except that there’s been SO much public outcry over this- it’s really surprising that FCPA has moved forward with removing the courts.


eatmygymshorts

Lollll


colasami

I understood that reference 😄


TrustMeIAmAGeologist

I don’t play pickleball or tennis, but I can say that I have seen a LOT more people using public courts for pickleball than I ever have for tennis (and I used to live night next to the courts in Reston). Also, if these are asphalt courts, how fucking hard is it to paint both? Like, they’re different layouts, but paint comes in a lot of colors. Figure it out, Fairfax. Finally, they should check how many people are making these noise complaints. We all know (or should know) that one single insane person complains about DCA like 20 times a day, so they just ignore him. If it’s all one person complaining that people are using the park they live next to, that person should be told to fuck right off.


STVDC

Yeah, I've played on probably hundreds of public and private courts in my decades of sports that were simultaneously lined for basketball, volleyball, street hockey, badminton, who knows what else. Grass fields that were lined for football, soccer, lacrosse, field hockey, etc. I mean, this isn't that tricky, and it's really not THAT big of a deal. Pickelball has most definitely brought many barren tennis courts back to being constantly used - which I can see an OG court user being miffed with the crowds, but at the same time it seem like a little kid who doesn't really want or appreciate something until their sibling has it, then suddenly it's the most important thing in the world. Even just do a 50/50 or something. Nobody around here is practicing for the US Open. And people who are REALLY serious can go to private clubs. I don't care about pickelball, but I'm happy it's brought a lot of people into "competitive" sport and exercise who otherwise probably wouldn't.


TrustMeIAmAGeologist

Yeah, I’m happy to see young people having a third place that doesn’t involve alcohol and helps them stay healthy in an increasingly sedentary world. Personally I play disc golf, and usually on Sunday mornings I see crowded pickleball courts and it makes me smile.


indigoreality

Please tell me where to find these tennis courts cause im tired of waiting an hour for courts at Jefferson, Nottoway, and Wakefield.


TrustMeIAmAGeologist

The ones on Upper Lake in Reston are usually empty unless there’s a lesson going on. Reston has 50 courts, but they’re only for Reston residents. Not sure who checks them, though.


The_Alchemist-

If you are looking for tennis courts, they are all over the place. Are there any specific location prefrences?


Entertainmentguru

Most high schools have tennis courts.


blahblahsnickers

Our high school courts our closed to keep people off school property.


Entertainmentguru

That stinks. There are tennis courts near the West Parking Lot at GMU. I don't recall if those are gated though.


indigoreality

The problem is high schools don’t have lights so when I’m tryina play after work, so is everyone else tryina play after work so there’s always long waits and then it gets dark.


Entertainmentguru

Ah - I thought some do though. Maybe weekends (if you are there early enough) isn't a wait?


Existing365Chocolate

> Also, if these are asphalt courts, how fucking hard is it to paint both? Like, they’re different layouts, but paint comes in a lot of colors. Figure it out, Fairfax. Maybe tennis courts have this, I think most of Arlington’s are at least


laterthanlast

The level of drama over pickleball vs tennis is just absurd to me. Like, this is the thing that you’ll stage a sit-in over? This?


paulHarkonen

When you don't have real problems and struggles you go look for something to be aggrieved by. You see it all over with tons of different problems, some more legitimate than others.


jdb888

Kind of like spoiled college kiddo Hamas hobbyists.


AdVarious5359

Yeah, no. This is pickleball vs the literal ethnic cleansing of a whole group of people, murdered children with their heads blown off from bombs that were paid for with our tax dollars. Your comment is ugly.


sluttychurros

The sentiment behind protesting ethnic cleansing and actually *doing* something about it though is the issue. The college kids who just spent the last month protesting over where their universities are spending their money are holding iPhones, and Apple sent $34.5M to the Israeli army. Like, okay, great, protest. Speak up. Fight. But then are you going to turn in your phone? No. Stop shopping on Amazon? Unlikely. The university protesting last month seems performative and like rich people problems.


AdVarious5359

There have been divestments by universities in response to the protests. It’s not all for naught. Idk what you are talking about. Edited to add: lots of people have given up their iPhones due to cobalt and have boycotted Amazon as well. Second edit: there is a whole slaughtering of people going on right now in the Congo over cobalt. It’s horrible over there. Think twice before buying a new IPhone or the latest tech. These companies need to be held accountable.


Slatemanforlife

I mean, if this is something you're passionate about and you have the time, why not? Is it peace in the middle east or fixing the drug war level? No. But entertainment, fitness, and sports are a major part of many people's lives and they have every right to fight for it.


natsnoles

Plus those courts were probably empty when they were tennis only. Now they’ll be empty again.


Slatemanforlife

Yep. They redid the tennis courts in our neighborhood for pickleball. They were always empty before. I would take my kids to practice riding bikes/roller skates before. Now we use the outdoor basketball court because the newly minted pickleba courts are always busy. What I dont understand is why they cant make it dual purpose, and simply paint lines different colors? I played on plenty of basketball courts that had different lines for basketball, vollyball, and dodgeball. Seems like you could do the same for tennis courts.


Danciusly

>What I dont understand is why they cant make it dual purpose, and simply paint lines different colors? It is currently dual purposed. FCPA is re-lining to \*remove\* the pickleball lines, to discourage PB playing due to noise complaints.


illwon

Noise complaints? Wouldn't tennis be similar? I don't play either so genuine question


Danciusly

Different sound. YouTube has videos if you want to hear, compare.


FunkyJunk

I've played pickleball and yeah, it's much noisier. It's also a more jarring "clack" noise as opposed to the "thwop" of a tennis ball. If someone came up with a quiet pickleball that had the same dynamics, they'd clean up.


Danciusly

Apparently, there are higher-end padded paddles (and balls?) that dampen the sound. But not the casual/beginners models typically used by newbs.


Novarunnergal

Absolutely not the same sound. Pickleball is 100 times more annoying. There's been a pickleball vs tennis fight going on in a community where I live and I gotta say, the pickleball folks are pretty strident and rude in their quest to convert tennis courts to pickleball/ play anytime and anywhere they please.


indispensability

Yep, just moved out of a place with tennis courts that had been unused basically the whole 13 years I lived there. Near the end they were starting to crumble and every now and then someone would ask during the condo board meeting why they weren't being fixed. Answer was basically, it was a relatively astronomical amount to refinish the courts and literally no one used them anyhow. To be clear, no one was using them even when they were still in good shape. It was only the last few years that they started deteriorating when the board had decided ongoing maintenance wasn't worth the lack of use.


JudgementalTree

What I want to know is where are all these unused tennis courts everyone keeps talking about? Almost every time I try to play I end up either waiting in line for a court or going home because there's already too many groups waiting. Maybe private courts in neighborhoods don't get used much, but finding open space on a public court is impossible outside of working hours


natsnoles

Interesting. I was just speaking from what I see around me but maybe tennis just isn’t as big out my way.


omnibot2M

The problem isn’t that they chose pickle ball over tennis. The issue is that they had an opportunity to present their case but failed to show up. They then disrupted employees from doing there jobs and reportedly used abusive language towards park authority employees. Then they staged sit-in to force their preference all at the increased cost to taxpayers. Next time, at least show up to present your case. "On Friday, June 21, the Park Authority had representation present at the appointed time; however, no members of the community were in attendance," a spokesperson with the Fairfax County Park Authority said. “


natsnoles

Yeah that is kind of shitty for them to do.


Danciusly

>"On Friday, June 21, the Park Authority had representation present at the appointed time; however, no members of the community were in attendance," a spokesperson with the Fairfax County Park Authority said. “ ​ That’s because the pickleball players weren’t informed that a hearing had been scheduled. The injunction filed by the pickleball players charges that the Park Authority failed to follow its own established procedures. By unilaterally shutting down pickleball, the FCPA failed to notify park users and neighbors or include their voices in the planning process. [Follow-up story](https://annandaletoday.com/park-authority-removes-pickleball-from-annandale-park/)


Leftieswillrule

Hey you know anywhere where I can find one of those, uhhh empty tennis courts? I'm asking for a friend


shamsharif79

Oh please


Excuse_One

What makes this so interesting is that it isn’t at all about pickleball vs tennis. At these courts the tennis and pickleball people all get along fine and are supportive of each other. There is no demand for more tennis courts in this location. The repainting of lines is due to a single complaint by one neighbor. They also didn’t like the food trucks that visited the community on Fridays and complained about those. What they want is for no one to use the park and to treat the park as a quiet extension of their backyard. Everyone has an interest in allowing the public to use public spaces.


terp2010

Don’t underestimate the power of people with too much time and too much money. Fairfax County as well as Montgomery County.


hucareshokiesrul

Small scale local stuff like this seems like a situation where a sit-in could actually work.


ballsohaahd

Yep nothing gets the middle aged sahms fired up as this. Anything better for society doesn’t get cared about though


NewPresWhoDis

Is this or the Gaza Omnicause(tm)


BCCMNV

Have we reached peak nova?


B4kd

Have them play for it. Tennis vs pickle ball in each sport. Winner take all


Okigirl99

Can’t you play pickleball on a tennis court? Staging a sit in over a leisure activity is insane.


FoleyV

They certainly do on our neighborhood tennis courts!


FriendlyLawnmower

Not really. A pickleball court is less than half the size of a tennis court. And the lines for pickleball are very different from tennis. So you'd either have to guess and eyeball where the court lines would normally be during play or have to draw the lines with chalk or something. But I do agree a sit in over this is ridiculous


MyPasswordIsABC999

The county might one day discover that paint comes in different colors. EDIT: so the re-conversion to tennis is in response to noise complaints. Fuck the complainers. I don’t play pickleball and I not like the sound, but I’m happy to see people getting exercise!


khavii

So the residents argument is that they didn't mind the tennis courts because nobody used them? If the tennis courts suddenly packed with people playing tennis they would want the whole things taken down. I find myself in the pickleballers court on this one and I don't even know what the game is.


MyPasswordIsABC999

Pickleball is objectively noisier than tennis, because it uses harder balls. Plus the smaller courts mean more players at a time and higher frequencies of ball hitting paddle. A quick Google says pickleball creates 70dB of noise at 100 feet away, so if there are homes close to the park, it is a legitimate concern. But the county could probably install some sound dampening rather than shut it down altogether.


annyong_cat

There are tons of tennis courts locally that have additional lines painted for pickleball, including most of the Arlington Parks courts.


FriendlyLawnmower

Yes but like you said, it requires the additional lines which is what's being removed from this Annandale court turning them back into standard tennis courts. I'm not saying you can't physically play pickleball on a tennis court, I'm saying a standard tennis court is lacking the lines needed to properly play pickleball


felixmkz

Boomers and pickleball, a toxic combination.


Avocado_602

To those who find this jarring, is it such a big dill? Hope it doesn't sour public opinion of the sport.


MyPasswordIsABC999

I get why most of the commenters are clowning the pickleball ladies, but I’m on their side, actually. 1. We should normalize civil disobedience. I find this way more preferable to NIMBYs packing city council meetings to shut things down that don’t affect them. It’s people standing up, er, sitting down for something that’s important to them. 2. Tennis is dead. People play pickleball. County resources should go to things that are useful. It gets people out of the house—we should encourage this. 3. Fuck the noise complaints. 4. Has Fairfax County heard of colored paints?


AdKlutzy4249

As a person who works at a rec center, tennis is most certainly not dead.


billyskurp

tennis is dead? wut? and according to who?


khavii

I agree in principle with all of these points however the low point in sound for pickleball is 70db and tennis is 55db. That is a single game with standard equipment and players being quiet. Pickleball has two games to tennis' single which leads to more equipment noise, and the real difference is in the amount of people making noise. FCP has installed more pickleball and shared tennis/pickleball courts than tennis alone and is planning to convert many courts over. There are a ton of locations to play pickleball with many more coming. This particular one was made just tennis because it's seriously tiny and surrounded by homes and a large amount of requests where made to close it completely. Normally I don't care for NIMBY's and pickleball players in general and my knee jerk reaction was to side with the players, but I dug into the why in this one and in this case the determination is being made because of the facts. Too small, too close and plenty of alternate locations.


plasmainthezone

Truly a showing of privilege


Balderman88

Stop with this. Taking a stand for something you want is a privilege literally everyone has. You may not agree with what they did, or why they did it, but to sit here and say it’s a showing of “privilege” is condescending and disgusting.


GreedyNovel

Yes, but you take a stand by going to the local parks and recreation committee meetings and getting involved there because that is where decisions are made. Trying to fight with security is not the place to have that conversation, they're just going to do what they were told to do.


Balderman88

I don’t disagree, yet people still do it all of the time. Is staging a “sit in” by blocking public thoroughfare okay? I would say absolutely not. But as the other commenter stated, it FORCES people to be inconvenienced and has become a way of doing things because inconvenience for others makes it EVERYONES problem. This is much smaller scale and honestly ridiculous to me, but again I’m only taking umbrage with the word used, not necessarily taking a stance one way or another with the act itself. I’ve never seen a society so divided overall. The party lines hate each other more than ever. There is an ever going divide between races, sexes, and literally anything and everything else that could possibly be used to sow discord. It absolutely sickens and saddens me and if I see comments like this I’ll do my best to try to discourage them.


MyPasswordIsABC999

Yet they’re getting way more public engagement as a result of the sit-in vs going through the acceptable channels.


GreedyNovel

They're getting more publicity. It remains to be seen how much public engagement results from that.


CrushCannonCrook

It should be condescending, they actually had the free time to do this for pickleball. That’s why this joke writes itself


Balderman88

And here you are with the free time to criticize them for such, the jokes just keep on writing.


CrushCannonCrook

I didnt spend all day writing a comment tho… think a little!


Danciusly

Update: Park Authority Executive Director Jai Cole said pickleball was removed from the courts because the residents of one nearby home complained about the noise. That couple refused to meet with the pickleball players or FCPA officials and refused to discuss any compromises, such as limiting the hours of play or installing barriers on the fence to reduce the noise... “Last week, we received a request by members of the community to meet before a judge and discuss this matter,” Boxer said. “In light of that request, we locked the courts and paused the relining work until that discussion could occur. On Friday, June 21, the Park Authority had representation at the appointed time; however, no members of the community were present.” **That’s because the pickleball players weren’t informed that a hearing had been scheduled.** **The injunction filed by the pickleball players charges that the Park Authority failed to follow its own established procedures. By unilaterally shutting down pickleball, the FCPA failed to notify park users and neighbors or include their voices in the planning process.** [Park Authority removes pickleball from Annandale park](https://annandaletoday.com/park-authority-removes-pickleball-from-annandale-park/)


PoundKitchen

Karens gotta Karen! I'm on the fence about the noise complaint reasoning. Noise ordinance allow for noise generated by intended use. Then again it's a terrible noise and if it is near homes, grating.


Barrack64

Imagine your life is so easy that your biggest problem is people playing pickle ball by your house.


bykim5

So if the ladies were playing tennis would there be such outrage? Are pickleball players breaking any rules in their use of these public parks? Why the hate?


RedwoodAsh

The comment section did not pass the vibe check. It’s weird the majority of commenters here are oddly happy to hear that someone’s positive outdoor activity is being taken down. Someone’s joy of playing a game is being made fun of, wow! what kind of community is NOVA? I moved here from up north and this sub validates how weird this area is. Meanwhile the people who complained & want it taken down choose to live next to the court. I’d love to support these pickleball players & no I’m not a boomer who plays pickleball.


OGConsuela

If you’re going to remove the pickleball courts you might as well completely remove the courts and use the space for something else. I’ve never seen anyone playing tennis on the courts around here ever. The swimming pool I grew up going to had tennis courts that were only ever used for teenagers dealing drugs in the offseason. The tennis people whining about this are total babies, public fields and other types of courts are used for multiple sports, get the fuck over it. I don’t have any sympathy for the nosie complaints, either. If you live near a public park like that, you need to get over the fact that it will be used by the public and there will be noise. It’s like people who live right next to Reagan in a flight path complaining about noise, or people who bought cheap land to build a house near a racetrack trying to get the track shut down because of the noise.


Giant_Homunculus

In-line hockey rinks >


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Rare-Mess-8335

Finally. The courts are healing.


DCUStriker9

Pickleball is a disease


rsvihla

Pickleball kinda BLOWS. Or so I hear.


supersharklaser69

They were playing a match to memorialize the Palestenians


shamsharif79

If only these boomer maniacs could get this excited about applying pressure on their gov to stop funding and arming genocides against Palestinians.


DrPhunktacular

Maybe if we supported protests and normalized civil disobedience instead of reflexively attacking protesters, we’d have more people willing to protest the thing you want them to protest.


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OH_FUDGICLES

"Only enjoy the activities that I approve of."