Centerton holds public hearing on $500,000 outdoor recreation grant for pickleball courts

Centerton city leaders opened a public hearing Aug. 12 for a proposed outdoor recreation grant that would fund outdoor courts at the city’s planned community-center site and at a separate Walters Road parcel.

Mayor Bill Edwards told the council the city plans to seek $250,000 from the Arkansas outdoor recreation fund and to provide a $250,000 local match; Edwards described the application as focused on outdoor tennis/pickleball courts at the community-center site and said ‘‘this grant specific is just for what I'm doing to community center.’’ He also said the city is acquiring land on Walters Road and hopes to add an additional eight outdoor courts there.

Why it matters: Speakers emphasized the courts’ broad community use across ages. The mayor said one stipulation of the grant is that the outdoor facilities must be free to the public.

Public comment: Residents, including Julie Maras (551 Lancaster Road), Wanda Cieri (1460 Sweet Briar Way) and Jimmy Russell (23 Larry Lane), urged the city to build multiple outdoor and indoor courts and suggested operational details — signage, gates, scheduling to balance youth and senior play, wind screens and lighting. Wanda Cieri said the sport draws players aged 10 to 75 and argued courts would support local families and seniors.

Council action: The council moved to open and then close the public hearing; no vote on the grant application itself was recorded at the meeting. Mayor Edwards said the signed meeting minutes and sign-in sheets will be included with the grant application as required.

Ending: The public hearing provided public support the mayor may reference in the application; the council did not vote to authorize the grant at this meeting.