Presidio Wall Schedule Change Q&A

Q: When does the new Presidio Wall (PW) schedule start?

• Monday, May 15, 2023. It will be revised once the new Larsen facility opens, probably in Fall.

Q: Are we getting more hours?

• This new schedule represents a substantial increase in dedicated and guaranteed access for Pickleball play at PW.  This summer, when days are longer, the increase in dedicated PB play hours during weekdays goes from 3 to 14 hours/day, or more than four times than now.  On weekends, the increase results in 6 additional PB courts being available on Saturdays during prime hours (9 AM to 3 PM), a similar 400% increase in guaranteed court time.

Q: What about Sundays?

• While Saturday play will have six additional courts, meaning 12 courts during prime time (9 AM to 3 PM), the lack of additional dedicated PB courts on Sundays was a trade-off that RPD insisted upon.  Spotery is still open for tennis court reservations on courts 3 & 4, however.  Holidays, like July 4 which falls on Tuesday this year, will continue using the daily weekday schedule.

Q: Will I lose out on how I book courts under the current schedule?

• We understand that PB players have creative ways to secure court time, which quite often involves reserving dual-lined tennis courts via Spotery.  This new schedule greatly increases overall PB court availability not only for drop-in open play, but because now all reservation slots will be for one-hour rather than 1.5 hours, it also provides more opportunities to make individual PB court reservations via Spotery.  In other words, there is an increase in the total number of reservable slots on the system each day.

Q: Why are there so many “reserved court” time slots on the schedule now?

• Some players have pointed out that court reservations disrupt the PB spirit of “drop-ins” and can lead to tense situations when open-play courts must yield to a group of players who have a court reserved.  RPD views reservations as allowing folks to know they will get ON a court IN ADVANCE of travelling to a venue, rather than arriving at PW only to find a huge player queue and limited play access. The root cause of waiting lines is, of course, the very limited number of other court resource options citywide, an issue we continue to try and resolve with RPD.  This new schedule for PW, however, keeps at least HALF of the courts available for drop-in open play.  Let’s see if this is the right balance at PW and request a change, if warranted, later this year.

Q: Why can’t we convert all court play at Presidio Wall to Pickleball?

• The primary objective of this new schedule is to give more opportunity for individuals and groups to enjoy Pickleball at Presidio Wall, as it is obvious the popularity of this sport is not going to decline anytime soon.  However, Rec & Park needs to continue providing tennis access, and this new schedule acknowledges the huge demand for PB court time, while still allowing schools and neighborhood tennis players an opportunity to book time at this local tennis venue.  RPD maintains that 4-court tennis sites are needed by High School programs and Presidio Wall is among only a limited number of City venues that meet this criteria.

Q: Is this new schedule really going to work out?

• We know it’s not a perfect compromise by any means, but it’s an honest attempt to address the capacity problem until additional Citywide PB court locations can be developed.  Let’s give it a chance, and see how it goes.  There will be opportunities to evaluate and modify the schedule to address issues that might arise this summer.

Q: When will we get a chance to work out necessary changes with RPD again?

• We intend to gather feedback in mid-summer to help structure upcoming schedule modifications that RPD will want to implement once the brand-new Larsen courts come on-line.  Player input can help to resolve items such as the proper ratio of open-play to reservable court hours that best serve the PB community’s evolving play habits at PW.  We also intend to apply all “lessons learned” at PW to other City court venues.

Q: Will the Intro to Pickleball beginner’s class still happen?

• Yes, on Tuesdays from 10 AM until noon on the six PB courts on Tennis pod 3 & 4 (moving off of pod courts 1 & 2).  A big shot out to our dedicated teachers, including Amar, Mary & Mel. THANKS !!