BRADENTON BEACH – In response to resident requests, the city will be installing pickleball guideline signs at the city courts in Herb Dolan Park and Lou Barolo Park.
Bradenton Beach resident Ed Dodge, along with other pickleball players, attended several city commission meetings and asked for rules to be posted at the pickleball courts, specifically to avoid having players monopolize the courts when others are waiting.
Modeled after the guidelines utilized at Manatee County-operated courts, the city commission, on March 5, adopted the following guidelines for the city’s pickleball courts:
• “Proper attire and footwear required
• “If people are waiting, finish your match and rotate out until your turn comes up again;
• “If no one is waiting, you may continue playing.”
“We adjusted the county rules a little bit,” Mayor John Chappie said. “It’s always been laid back at Dolan and Barolo on the honor system. One might say it’s more of a suggestion that people follow these guidelines.
The city eliminated the following from the county rules:
• “No pets allowed;
• “No playing of music;
• “No profanity or foul language;
• “Smoking/Vaping prohibited in park.”
“The rules are going to work just fine,” Dodge said. “We’re not going to have any problems.”
Commissioner Deborah Scaccianoce expressed concern about the enforcement of the guidelines.
“I think if we put a sign up, people are going to assume we put it there and it’s going to be enforceable,” she said.
Commissioner Ralph Cole asked if the city is obligated to enforce the rules.
Filling in for City Attorney Erica Augello, attorney Robert Eschenfelder said. “If you sometimes enforce and sometimes don’t enforce, you may be accused of selective enforcement. I always recommend if you’re going to adopt a rule, make sure you’re willing to evenly enforce it. If you put it in your code, it becomes a code violation issue, but if you just post this is what we would like to happen in this park, I don’t see any issue with that.”
“If folks are coming from different places and the rules are different, and we have something posted there, it stops the back and forth,” Commissioner Scott Bear said.
Commissioner Robert Talham said he didn’t think the rules were needed.
“It’s one more thing we have to worry about,” he said. “We don’t need more rules. We need enforcement. Are we going to enforce this? No.”
Chappie said he preferred characterizing the signs as offering guidelines, as opposed to calling them rules.
“I like what you came up with,” Dodge said. “This will take all the conflict out. We’re just trying to make sure it’s fair.”
The motion to put up signs with guidelines at both city pickleball courts passed unanimously.
