From Strategy to Reality: What Vaughan’s Pickleball Experience Is Teaching Us

The 2025 City of Vaughan’s Tennis and Pickleball Strategy was developed through a consultant-led process, widely understood to have been led by Monteith Brown Planning Consultants, a firm with extensive experience in municipal recreation planning.

There is a certain irony in this, particularly as neighbouring municipalities — including Richmond Hill — are now engaging the same firm at a reported cost of $150,000 to study many of the very same questions: court shortages, indoor access, organized play, and how to respond to rapidly growing pickleball demand.

As a result, Richmond Hill residents will likely need to wait until 2027 to be formally told what has already been demonstrated repeatedly across Ontario through numerous Monteith Brown pickleball strategies — a process that began in 2022 with Coincils approval to build 16 dedicated courst with provisioning for a bubble and been delayed until Q1 2027, nearly five years later, and at significant public cost, despite the well-known conclusions of many Monteith Brown pickleball stratgies.

Strategy Meets Reality at Le Parc

When four dedicated pickleball courts opened at Le Parc Park in 2024, the results were immediate and unmistakable. The courts are filled daily from morning to evening. Players of all ages and skill levels showed up, leading to long wait times, conflicts, and a new version of pickleball called 10-30. Play for 10 minutes and sit for 30.

To its credit, the City of Vaughan responded decisively. Based on community feedback and growing demand, the City committed to adding eight additional courts at Le Parc, bringing the total to 12, by late 2026. We suspect that at this time next year, they will add another 4-8 courts and possibly convert the infrequently used tennis court to pickleball.

This was an important moment — one that quietly confirmed what pickleball players and operators have been saying for years:
Dedicated, clustered courts are essential, not optional.

What the Vaughan Pickleball Strategy Got Right

The Strategy correctly identified several key realities:

• Pickleball is one of the fastest-growing sports in Vaughan

• Shared-use courts create confusion and frustration

• Demand is strongest at the beginner and intermediate levels

• There is meaningful interest in community-based organized pickleball clubs

It also introduced a formal court provision target (1:5000) — a necessary step toward long-term accountability.

These are all positives. The Strategy laid a foundation.

What Experience Is Now Clarifying

Like many municipal plans, the Strategy was understandably cautious in a few key areas — areas where real-world experience is now providing greater clarity.

Indoor Pickleball Is Not Optional

Outdoor courts are critical, but they represent only half of the solution in a four-season city. Demand for indoor pickleball already exceeds supply, yet indoor facilities are still framed as something to “explore” rather than deliver. Pickleball is a year-round sport, and not all residents can afford or access higher-cost private indoor facilities. Expanding affordable, publicly accessible indoor options will be essential to meeting sustained demand.

Organized Play Improves Access

Pickleball thrives when play is structured appropriately. Leagues, ladders, and skill-based sessions reduce congestion, shorten wait times, and significantly improve the overall player experience. While the Strategy acknowledges interest in organized play and community clubs, Vaughan still lacks a clear pathway to integrate these models at scale — despite strong evidence from neighbouring communities that organized play increases, rather than restricts, access.

Planning for Growth Includes Parking and Access

As dedicated pickleball hubs expand, supporting infrastructure becomes part of the planning conversation. With Vaughan adding eight additional courts at Le Parc Park, daily participation will continue to grow — a positive outcome that also requires foresight. Larger facilities attract more players, longer playing windows, and organized programming, all of which place greater demand on parking. Addressing parking capacity and access alongside court expansion will be essential to ensuring that Le Parc functions smoothly and remains a positive experience for both players and surrounding neighbourhoods. Thoughtful parking planning is not a constraint on growth — it is a key enabler of it.

Why Carrville Is the Logical Next Step

The lesson from Le Parc is straightforward: build where demand already exists.

Carrville Community Centre (4 courts) is the most recent hub for pickleball activity but the layout and rotation protocol leave many frustrated. Demand there closely mirrors what Le Parc experienced.

Adding an additional eight dedicated pickleball courts at Carrville would:

• Distribute demand more evenly across the city

• Reduce pressure on Le Parc and shared-use sites

• Support organized programming and leagues

• Align Vaughan with leading municipalities such as Newmarket, which planned for scale earlier and now benefits from predictable access and efficient court use - >> See our blog post on Newmarket - A Case Study in Getting It Right and Newmarket Sets the Standard for Pickleball Development in York Region - Part II

This is not overbuilding. It is responding appropriately to demonstrated demand.

Moving Forward with Clarity

Consultant-led strategies have their place — and Vaughan’s Strategy played an important role in formalizing what many already knew. But Le Parc has shown that real-world usage is the most powerful data point of all.

As other municipalities like Richmond Hill continue lengthy and expensive planning cycles, Vaughan appears to be on the right path and hopefully on its way to following the lead of pickleball-friendly communities like Newmarket. What the numerous studies have all concluded:

Across Canada, pickleball strategies are increasingly pointing in the same direction. Experience is showing that large, dedicated pickleball facilities — true pickleball hubs — offer the most effective way to meet demand, improve access, and create positive playing environments. Just as important is the role of indoor facilities. Pickleball has clearly become a year-round sport, with consistent participation across seasons and age groups. The demand is real, sustained, and growing. By acknowledging this shared reality and working collaboratively with clubs, operators, and community partners, municipalities have an opportunity to move from managing pressure to planning with confidence. When strategy and lived experience align, everyone benefits — players, cities, and the broader community.

The next chapter isn’t about more studies — it’s about execution.

Source : Tennis and Pickleball Strategy