On Saturday, June 3, 2023, the City of Crestview celebrated the grand opening of its newly renovated sports facility at Twin Hills Park, which now features new basketball and tennis courts, along with 6 new pickleball courts. 

• The project, spearheaded by Chuck Powell, Director of the Parks and Recreation Department, aimed to address the deteriorating condition of the courts and meet the growing demand for pickleball in the community.

Powell, who has been with the city for over three decades, explained the need for the renovation: “The courts had gotten into bad shape. Our maintenance crews with the city tried to maintain them as best as we could, but then it got to the point that we needed to do something.” 

• In 2020-21, he included the renovation of the courts at Twin Hills Park into his budget proposal.

Initially, the plan was to renovate one full-size basketball court, a tennis court, and add two pickleball courts where the previous tennis courts were located. However, the popularity of pickleball prompted a change in the project scope. Powell elaborated, “Once we got started on the project, a friend of mine that’s really active in the pickleball community came to me and said he thinks we have room to put more than just two courts out there.”

Taking advantage of the available space, the team measured and adjusted the layout to accommodate six regulation-size pickleball courts, which he says is large enough to host tournaments. The renovations included the installation of new fencing and the complete refurbishment of all the courts. 

• “We had our ribbon cutting on Saturday and there was a great turnout,” he added. “There were people there playing on three of the courts as well as people learning and playing pickleball for the first time.”

Crestview has seen a growing pickleball community, with the first two courts being constructed at Blackwater Golf Course in late 2021, early 2022. Powell says since opening the new courts at Twin Hills Park, there have been people out there playing pickleball every day.

In terms of the cost and duration of the project, Powell said that they remained under budget, with a total cost of $41,000. The renovation work took approximately five months, starting in January and finishing up in May.

Reflecting on the completed project, Powell says he is very pleased with the final result.

“People were going out to this court before we renovated it and playing pickleball on the old tennis court. I knew we were doing the right thing because I was seeing people out there playing, even before we even started.”

The revamped sports facility at Twin Hills Park provides Crestview residents with improved basketball and tennis courts, as well as a robust offering for the growing pickleball community. With the addition of six regulation-size pickleball courts, the park now has the capacity to host tournaments and cater to players of all skill levels. 

The park is open from 7:00 AM – 11:00 PM daily, and there are lights. It is located at 100 Hathaway St S, Crestview, FL 32539