Thursday, March 28, 2024

City of Southlake Breaks Ground on New Pickleball Facility

The fastest-growing sport in America is finding a permanent home in Southlake!

This Wednesday, April 19, City officials gathered in Bicentennial Park to officially break ground on the much-awaited pickleball facility. As Southlake has grown over the years, so has the emergence of Pickleball. Bicentennial Park is a cornerstone of our community and the new pickleball facility will only add to its greatness.

City leaders from the City Council, Southlake Parks Development Corporation, and Park and Recreation Board gathered early on Wednesday morning to kick off the construction of the facility. Speeches by Mayor Huffman, Mayor Pro Tem Williamson, and Park Board Chair Scharli explained how this project came to fruition.

Recognizing the growing popularity and demand for the sport, City Council awarded the bid to construct a nine-court pickleball facility within Bicentennial Park during a March 2023 City Council meeting. Recommendations for investing in a pickleball facility were outlined in the Southlake 2035 Parks, Recreation & Open Space Master Plan adopted by City Council at their June 15, 2021 meeting. The new $4.5 million complex will be funded by the Southlake Parks Development Corporation (SPDC) Capital Improvements Program.

Created in 1992, the Southlake Parks and Development Corporation administers the city’s half-cent sales tax and applies it toward parks-related capital projects. Since then, this funding source has paid for the redevelopment and construction of various community parks such as Bicentennial Park, Bob Jones Park, and North Park.

Construction started the week of April 14, 2023, with an estimated completion date of fall 2023. Once completed, along with plenty of space to socialize with friends and family, the facility will house eight pickleball courts, one championship court, restrooms, and a staff office. Visit our Pickleball page to learn more about the project.

We can’t wait to celebrate the grand opening of Southlake’s newest community facility in the Fall!

City Council Approves the Parks, Recreation & Open Space Master Plan

City Council adopted the City of Southlake’s Parks, Recreation and Open Space Master Plan at its June 15 meeting.

The Parks, Recreation and Open Space Master Plan is an element of the Southlake 2035 Comprehensive Plan, which encompasses the vision, goals and objectives that define the values in the community.  The plan development represents over a year and a half of work between elected and appointed officials, community stakeholders and citizens and will serve as a framework to guide decisions related to parks and open space planning for the future.

In 2019, City Council appointed the Parks Board to oversee the development of the Parks, Recreation and Open Space Master Plan. As part of the plan’s development, the Park Board conducted a community parks citizens survey and studied the results, received feedback from social media engagement, held 15 public meetings, received input from other City boards such as the Southlake Youth Action Committee, Senior Advisory Committee, Southlake Kids Interested in Leadership and School Health Advisory Council, held an open house to receive public feedback on the plan and held a SPIN (Southlake Programs for the Involvement of Neighborhoods) meeting.

In addition, both the City Council and Planning and Zoning Commission held a public hearing on the plan prior to adoption. The plan development process took place in four phases: review of the current state of parks recreation and open spaces, incorporate community feedback and develop new concept plans and recommendations.

Once the Park Board developed the recommendations were divided into three categories: citywide policy recommendations, capital parks projects recommendations and non-capital parks project recommendations.

For each specific recommendation, a relative tier ranking was established to articulate the expected implementation timeframe for that recommendation and are then prioritized and ranked by the parks board and City Council.

“Great parks and open space play such an important role in strengthening our community, improving our physical and mental health, and making Southlake a great community to live and work.  The Park Board in conjunction with the Community Services and Planning and Development Departments have worked diligently over the past 18 months to create a plan that will serve as a blueprint to ensure that Southlake has great parks and open space to serve our citizens and many future generations,” Senior Director of Planning and Development Services Ken Baker said.

A full copy of the newly adopted City of Southlake Parks, Recreation and Open Space Master Plan is available on the City of Southlake’s website.

The plan encompasses strategies that will continue to accommodate the growing Southlake community by creating more opportunities for recreational programs and services, in addition to investing in enhanced park facilities and open spaces.

These recommendations were collected utilizing community surveys, public meetings and social media engagement.

Learn What’s in Store with the Updated Parks Master Plan

Interested in hearing what’s in the Parks, Recreation and Open Space Master Plan? Join us for one of the upcoming SPIN, Planning & Zoning Commission or City Council meetings!

The Parks, Recreation and Open Space Master Plan is a component of the Southlake 2035 Comprehensive Plan. The comprehensive plan reflects the community’s values and serves as a blueprint for Southlake’s future. It also establishes a framework to coordinate the City’s activities and guide the City’s decision making for the next several years. The comprehensive plan and its components are updated on a regular basis.

The most recent master plan was adopted in 2013 and amended in 2018.

On August 6, 2019, the City Council appointed the Parks and Recreation Board as the City of Southlake Parks, Recreation and Open Space Master Plan Committee, to oversee the development of the Parks Master Plan Update. Staff also held meetings with the Southlake Kids Interested in Leadership (SKIL), Southlake Youth Action Commission (SYAC) and the Senior Advisory Commission (SAC) to assist with updates. A meeting was also held with the Carroll ISD School Health Advisory Council (SHAC) to update them on the plan development process.

The Parks, Recreation & Open Space Master Plan Committee recommended approval of the plan at their May 10 meeting. The plan now goes to the Planning & Zoning Commission for review and approval, followed by a SPIN meeting and open house, and then on to City Council for review and final approval. The schedule is below:

  • May 20 – Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting
  • May 25 – SPIN Town Hall Forum and Open House
  • June 1 – City Council 1st reading
  • June 15 – City Council 2nd reading

For more information about the Parks, Recreation and Open Space Master Plan, visit CityofSouthlake.com/Parks2035.

Bicentennial Park Phase 3 Renovation Underway

These enhancements are a part of the Southlake 2030 Parks, Recreation and Open Space/Community Facilities Master Plan. The City anticipates substantial completion of this project by October 31, weather and external conditions permitting.

The project is divided into three areas. The first area includes irrigation and turfing of the large field west of the existing in-line hockey rink. The second area consists of the renovation and expansion of the in-line hockey rink and addition of synthetic turf. The existing restroom building will be repurposed into a storage facility. The third area includes the placement of safety netting at the 60/90 baseball field to protect pedestrians from foul balls.

The irrigation project at the large field west of the in-line hockey rink has been completed and the repurposing and renovation of the existing restroom facility is on schedule. Poles have been placed for the foul ball netting, with installation on the horizon.

The City of Southlake is working to improve the standard of living and keep Southlake special for our residents with a variety of projects from streets and other critical services to parks. For more information about the 2030 Parks, Recreation and OpenSpace/Community Facilities Master Plan, click here.