Pasco County will spend $700,000 to build nine dedicated pickleball courts at Wesley Chapel District Park, the county's first public pickleball facility not painted over existing tennis courts, the Tampa Bay Beacons reported.

"In the entire county at this moment, there are no dedicated pickleball courts run by parks," Brian Taylor, recreation manager for Pasco County Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources, told the Beacons.

The county plans to break ground in December and finish by early summer 2027. The lighted courts will be arranged in pods of three with shade structures and bleacher seating. Access will cost $10 per year or require an existing county membership card.

Pasco currently offers pickleball only on painted tennis-court lines at parks including Land O' Lakes Recreation Complex, Starkey Ranch District Park and Wesley Chapel District Park itself. Taylor said the project responds to years of growing demand since the COVID-19 pandemic, as tennis and pickleball players compete for the same court space.

Looking ahead, plans for the future Village of Pasadena Hills park call for eight dedicated pickleball courts alongside four tennis courts. No public comment deadline for the Wesley Chapel project has been announced.