City adds Pickleball at MLK Jr. Center in Lenoir

LENOIR, NC (April 14, 2023) — City of Lenoir Parks & Recreation staff have added three indoor pickleball courts at the Martin Luther King Jr. Center. Lenoir now has six indoor and four outdoor pickleball courts for residents and visitors.

Parks and Recreation Director Phil Harper said that striping the three new courts at the Martin Luther King Jr. Center was pretty easy, and it brings more activities to the facility.

City staff added three new pickleball courts in the gym at the Martin Luther King Jr. Center.

“All we had to do was stripe the courts in the gym and buy three more nets. Now we have one more sport people can play here at the Martin Luther King Jr. Center,” Director Harper said. “We have a group planning to play here on Thursdays. It’s always good to get more people using our recreation facilities.”

In addition to the courts at the Martin Luther King Jr. Center, there are three indoor courts and four outdoor pickleball courts at Mulberry Recreation Center. People can play on the outdoor courts anytime from dawn until the park lights are turned off. The indoor pickleball courts at Mulberry Recreation are available Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to noon.

“Having more courts means more people have the chance to play,” Director Harper said.

Local residents practice playing pickleball at the Martin Luther King Jr. Center Thursday, April 13, 2023.

Pickleball combines elements of tennis, badminton, and ping-pong. It can be played indoors or outdoors on a badminton-sized court and a slightly modified tennis net. Pickleball is played with a paddle and a plastic ball with holes and can be played as doubles or singles. Click the following link to learn more about pickleball, www.usapickleball.org.

The Martin Luther King Jr. Center is located at 313 Greenhaven Dr. NW. The center offers a lighted baseball/softball field, indoor and outdoor basketball courts, club room, game room, lounge, kitchen, computer lab, exercise room, gymnasium, playground, lighted shuffleboard courts, social hall, lighted tennis courts, and a weight room. The center is open Monday through Thursday from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm and Friday from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm.

Local residents play pickleball at the Martin Luther King Jr. Center Thursday, April 13, 2023.

Support the Caldwell Journal for as little as $1 a month through Patreon. Thank you!