Okotoks man is ready to take his fight against pickleball to court

Robert Burns says he spent more than 20 years building the house in Okotoks, Alta., that he and his wife now live in, but a spike in pickleball popularity is making them consider moving away — and making Burns consider legal action against the town.

"It has ruined our quality of life," Burns said. "You basically have to spend all your time inside with background noise on. Lay down for a nap, got to put a radio on."

Noise from neighbouring tennis courts used for pickleball reverberates through his home. Sometimes, Burns says, players will begin as early as 7 a.m. The small cul-de-sac behind their home becomes packed with cars on a  busy day — he says it's just not the right place for this activity.

Burns took his concerns to an Okotoks town council meeting and presented a report, referring to engineers and referees who've described the noise that the game creates.

He quoted Bob Unetich, an engineer and a referee, who wrote in Pickleball Magazine that frequent pickleball sounds are typically about 70 dBa at about 30 metres away from the strike of of the ball. 

"Residents in homes located in a quiet residential area that are within 100 feet from pickleball courts are used to noise levels of 40 dBa, therefore the level of pickleball noise is 30 decibels louder," Unetich wrote.

Town takes action

During a town meeting Monday, Okotoks councillors agreed to further research the noise from pickleball and find ways to mitigate the sounds.

It was set in motion after Coun. Brent Robinson asked at a previous meeting whether a review of the noise from pickleball play at the Wilson Park courts had been done to determine if it violated town bylaws.

In response, town administrators said they had not done a decibel test of the noise from the courts during pickleball play.

"Based on research, the decibel level increase does not fully reflect the noise disturbance created by the continuous pop of the ball striking the racquet that is disturbing to nearby persons," read the response.

During Monday's meeting, council passed a motion to direct administration to work with pickleball stakeholders to measure the sound and explore sound abatement options and associated costs to reduce noise concerns.

Administration is to provide a report to council by June 12.

If nothing is done by August, Burns said, he is prepared to take legal action.