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Two mayoral appointments could pave the way for an awaited vote on whether to allow pickleball at Key Biscayne’s 32-acre Crandon Park Tennis Center.
A Nov. 20 memorandum from Mayor Daniella Levine Cava announced she had appointed Raquel Regalado, the county commissioner for the area, and Mike Davey, former mayor of the Village of Key Biscayne, as members of the four-person Crandon Park Amendment Committee (CPAC), which controls what uses are allowed there.
“We’re going to have a meeting… At this meeting, we’ll discuss it [pickleball],” said Commissioner Regalado. “If the committee decides to add pickleball to the masterplan, then we’ll be able to do that at the tennis center. I think it’s a good fit. I believe that it’s a derivative of tennis … and I think it’ll allow us to provide more activities on the Key.”
Uses of the park are limited and changes are complicated based on the land’s history and a former lawsuit.
In 1940, the Matheson family donated the 800 Crandon Park acres to the county in return for a pledge that a causeway would be built to link the island to the mainland. In 1947, the Rickenbacker Causeway opened.
A tennis center was built in the county-operated park in 1987 for the globally famed professional tournament that became known as the Miami Open.
A requirement that a four-member committee approve any alterations to the park’s 1993 master plan was created in a settlement with the tournament over expansion. That plan limits the 32-acre center to tennis.
Then, a decade ago a request for further expansion of the tennis center by tournament organizer International Players Championship from one permanent stadium to four permanent stadiums was rejected and failed in a lawsuit. Unable to win an expansion, the tournament was moved to its present Miami Gardens site.
As Miami Today previously reported, in March 2022 Commissioner Regalado, whose District Seven encompasses Key Biscayne, proposed bringing pickleball to the tennis center. After the proposition passed with the support of the county commission, a meeting of the amendment committee was awaited. But until this month membership of the committee was incomplete.
“First, we spent a lot of time doing the research on the lawsuit, and the limitations,” said Ms. Regalado. “We asked for a legal opinion on if pickleball was a derivative of tennis … because the lawsuit and the settlement allow for tennis. Our attorney said that pickleball was not a derivative of tennis.
Then we had to do a little bit of research on what’s the next thing … [which] is taking it before this committee to see if they would approve pickleball as part of … the master plan, and allow pickleball at the tennis center.”
Ms. Regalado said she hopes for a meeting before the end of the year. However, a meeting will depend on the availability of the other members as well.
The initial idea of bringing pickleball to the center sprang from the countywide interest in the sport.
“There’s been a huge interest in pickleball in the Key … We have some courts that the village retrofitted at Calusa, which have been very, very popular,” Ms. Regalado said. “But we actually did a countywide survey on Pickleball and found that, I think it was like 68% of the people who play pickleball live in District Seven. There’s a lot of people who play pickleball.… We did an audit of all the courts, including the courts that were available and … we have a lot of Key Biscayne residents that want more pickleball courts.”
The demographic and interest of the residents of Key Biscayne also contribute to conversation as to why pickleball would be a good fit in the center.
“One of the things that we’ve been talking about in Key Biscayne is how the population has changed and we don’t have a lot of activities for teenagers, and also for older residents and adults, and pickleball is a great fit,” said Ms. Regalado.
However, Crandon Park’s 800 acres also could possibly accommodate pickleball elsewhere.
“Crandon Park offers pickleball opportunities other than [in] the tennis center site,” said Bruce Matheson, who also is a member of the amendment committee.
Despite pickleball’s uncertain future in Crandon Park, the sport’s demand in the area is one that will continue to grow.
“It’s [pickleball] something that fits with the village. They want to have more sports, they want to have … more activity,” Ms. Regalado said. “I think that this matches that delicate balance of having activities without being so intrusive that it changes the character of Crandon.”
