ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — Pickleball in the United States has grown in popularity over the past few years.
According to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association's (SFIA) 2024 Topline Participation Report, pickleball is the fastest-growing sport in America, "having grown 51.8% from 2022 to 2023, and an incredible 223.5% in three years." SFIA is a trade association that enhances industry vitality and fosters sports and fitness participation through research, thought leadership, product promotion and public policy, as stated on its website.
The sport has grown so much so that a developer wants to build a massive pickleball complex along County Road 16A in St. Augustine. The proposed 12,000-square foot facility would include both indoor and outdoor pickleball courts, but could also eventually host other sports as well.
If approved by St. Johns County officials, the facility would located on about two acres of land off County Road 16A near the Wards Creeks subdivision.
The county's development review committee will discuss the proposed project at a meeting on Wednesday.
Further proving the heightened admiration for pickleball, in June, a 23,000-square foot indoor pickleball facility opened in Jacksonville, making it the largest in the city.