AMHERST — Amherst’s first pickleball courts, which would be constructed at Groff Park, 83 Mill Lane, and a bathroom for the Plum Brook soccer fields, are among six active recreation projects seeking $1.72 million from the Community Preservation Act account.
Amherst Recreation Director Rey Harp, supported by the Department of Public Works, recently submitted an $850,000 request to get the pickleball courts built at the South Amherst location and make associated Americans with Disabilities Act improvements.
“This proposal is to request the additional funding needed to complete the installation of public pickleball courts and will fund the permitting, surface prep and drainage work, install a construction access and extend the ADA access trail to the courts, and then to
construct the pickleball courts with all the necessary appurtenances such as fencing, nets, and any necessary sound attenuating features,” Harp wrote in the application.
Pickleball courts have been long awaited by pickleball enthusiasts, and the Recreation Committee in September endorsed a new CPA application, even though in February the CPA Committee turned down a $650,000 request.
Since 2021, plans have been abandoned at other sites, including Kiwanis Field on Stanley Street, after neighborhood objections. Those who play the sport in town have used indoor and outdoor courts at the soon-to-be-closed Hampshire College, or on restriped tennis courts at Mill River Recreation Area in North Amherst.
Another sizable request from Amherst Recreation, the DPW and Amherst Soccer is $350,000 needed for installing a restroom building at the Potwine Lane site of Plum Brook.
“The Plum Brook Recreation Area is heavily used throughout the year, mainly in the spring and fall to support the youth soccer programming within the town. Even with the regular usage, there is no permanent restroom facility at this location,” wrote Assistant DPW Superintendent Amy Rusiecki.
There is another $170,000 request, from Denise Leckenby, the aquatics director for Amherst Recreation, to install a pool liner at the main pool at Mill River, which will help extend the life of the 1970s-era facility and lower costs by not having to do regular repainting, and $110,000, also from Harp, to pay for a plan to update the playground and other amenities at Mill River, while also addressing various ADA barriers.
“The major focus areas of the re-design include access to the pool and outdoor restrooms, egress/access to and from the parking lots, replacement of old and outdated playground equipment, and improved access to the pavilion,” Harp wrote. “The plan will also consider replacing the 1970s wading pool with a modest size spray pad.”
Other requests for active recreation projects are $165,265 from Amherst Youth Baseball League to rehabilitate the full-size baseball diamond located at Amherst Regional Middle School and $75,000 from the public schools to assess and redesign the lower grades playground at Crocker Farm School.
