Oak Harbor pickleball players launch grassroots court build

Oak Harbor pickleball players have stopped waiting on City Hall and moved to build their own courts, turning abandoned tennis and basketball space in Castilian Hills into five new pickleball courts. The Whidbey Pickleball Association and the Castilian Hills homeowners association are backing the project, which is expected to cost under $100,000 and could have four courts finished as soon as September.

The plan gives local players a faster path to more courts after years of crowded, uneven public options. Darin Cook, who leads the association, has been pressing for more space as membership has grown to at least 160 players, and the club has argued that Oak Harbor’s existing outdoor setup is not keeping up with demand. Right now, outdoor play is limited to four courts on Oak Harbor School District property at Rotary Park near North Whidbey Middle School, and two of those courts are in poor condition.

That urgency is what makes the Castilian Hills project different from the city’s slower-moving plans. Instead of waiting for a full municipal build, the association is using advertising and membership revenue to pay for construction while the neighborhood contributes the site. The approach turns an unused property into a recreation asset without asking players to sit through another long public timetable.

Oak Harbor has already spent years chasing a permanent solution. In April 2022, the City Council approved a memorandum of understanding with the school district for two additional pickleball courts, but the vote was only 4-3. Earlier, the city had budgeted $80,000 in 2019 for two courts in Neil Park, with $50,000 coming from real estate excise tax funds and the rest supposed to come from donations that never arrived.

The numbers only got bigger from there. By 2023, the city estimated refurbishing the Rotary Park courts would cost $190,000, or at least $95,000 without fencing. In March 2024, council unanimously approved a $78,100 contract with RWD Landscape Architects for a design that would lead to eight new courts in either Sumner Park or Fort Nugent Park, but construction funding still had not been secured.

The city’s court planning also slowed after a leadership change in Parks and Recreation. Brian Smith is no longer director, and City Administrator Sabrina Combs is handling the role in the meantime as the city reworks its long-term planning. That opening has pushed the grassroots route to the front, and if the Castilian Hills conversion stays on schedule, Oak Harbor will have a new set of courts on the ground before the city’s permanent plan reaches the finish line.