Gainesville opens eight public pickleball courts at Tom Petty Park

Gainesville just added a real answer for crowded public pickleball: eight new dedicated courts at Tom Petty Park, built into a $2.6 million renovation that gives northeast Gainesville more places to play without a membership fee. The reopening at the 22.5-acre park at 501 NE 16th Ave. was more than a ribbon-cutting photo op. It was a visible bet that pickleball belongs in the city’s core recreation mix.

Roughly 100 people showed up for the June 6 celebration, and the scene fit the park’s history. Residents sang Tom Petty’s “Won’t Back Down” as the site reopened, a fitting touch for a neighborhood park renamed in honor of Tom Petty in 2018. Gainesville resident Rick Chin, a 65-year-old pickleball player, called it one of the city’s better uses of public money and said the courts were exceptional, while also pointing to the boost the project could bring to northeast Gainesville.

The new courts were not an afterthought. City materials from December 2023 laid out an eight-court pickleball plan with a pavilion, seating, bike racks, a drinking fountain, a sign-up board, a paddle rack, ADA-accessible walk connections and lighted courts with 8-foot perimeter fencing and 4-foot interior fencing. The city said construction on the Tom Petty Park project began in May 2025 and was expected to finish in spring 2026, with pickleball court construction and electrical work among the major milestones in August 2025.

The renovation came in two phases, first the courts, entry work, trails, stormwater improvements and lighting, then the bathroom upgrades. As of a February 19 city update, the tennis courts had reopened with a new shade canopy on the east end, while new restrooms were still under construction and were set to be part of a larger building that also includes storage and concessions. The park’s upgraded lighting is meant to extend play into the evening across the pickleball courts, the multipurpose field and the softball and baseball fields.

That matters because Gainesville’s pickleball demand is already real. A 2023 indoor showcase drew 410 players and filled all 21 courts at the Alachua County Sports & Events Center, a clear sign that the local game needed more public space. With the Tom Petty Park courts now open to everyone, Gainesville is treating pickleball less like a trend and more like permanent park infrastructure.