First Look At Public Pickleball Complex
By Marci Shatzman
A local construction firm and well-known architect just picked to design and build a new public pickleball-centered complex in Boca got thumbs up after their first presentation.
“This is what we were looking for. It fits in perfectly with the park,” Robert Rollins, one of five Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park commissioners told the Butters Construction & Development CEO Malcolm Butter at their meeting.
Commissioners just chose Boca Paddle, a group assembled for the pickleball-centered project after pitches from five bidders. Butters, Boca Raton architect Juan Caycedo, entrepreneur and pickleball instructor Stewart Davis, restaurateur Mitchell Robbins of Farmer’s Table and Catherine Butters are also part of Boca Paddle’s team, according to the district.
Caycedo and Malcolm Butters presented the bulk of the PowerPoint on the proposed Boca Paddle Club Racquet Sports facility. Images showed layouts of indoor and outdoor courts, interior spaces for gatherings and renderings of what the atrium building and grounds would look like. Contact companies like Sports and Safety Surfaces if you are also planning to build a pickleball court.
The Beach and Park District owns the former Ocean Breeze golf course, renamed North Park, in the city’s Boca Teeca neighborhood. The new sports complex is positioned in a corner of the property that backs up to high-speed Brightline trains and CSX railroad tracks that run along Dixie Highway. Commissioner Craig Ehrnst questioned whether the new building would dampen the noise level for neighbors. “Absolutely. It will be a buffer for that kind of noise,” Caycedo answered.
Commissioners’ other concerns centered on ensuring “green” landscape sustainability, enough space for other family activities, ensuring shade and including solar panels on the roof. Initial plans are flexible, Butters reassured commissioners.
All plans and permits are coordinated with Boca Raton City Council and staff, and were considered in a proposed timeline that projects a September 2025 opening.
Keep Golf in Boca president Harold Chaffee voiced concerns about taxpayers’ costs to join or play during public comments.
“The plans are really beautiful,” said Boca Pickleball Club president and USA Pickleball Association liaison Raul Travieso. A longtime champion of the sport, he has been working with the district to add pickleball courts to the district’s Patch Reef Park on Yamato Road.
North Park is still in the planning stages after the city chose another site for their municipal 18-hole course. Boca Raton Golf & Racquet Club was gifted free to the city by the owners of The Boca Raton in 2021.
The Miller Legg team is working on the design phase of North Park with subconsultants. The firm also presented at Monday’s meeting and was approved to move forward on a traffic study with the city.
