Kitchener hosting first Pickleball festival downtown

The City of Kitchener is hosting its first-ever Pickleball festival on Tuesday, bringing in professional players while also giving residents a chance to pick up a paddle for the first time.

The Downtown Paddle Palooza Pickleball Festival, kicking off at 2 p.m., will transform Carl Zehr Square, in front of Kitchener City Hall, into a professional pickleball court, with several courts set up for community drop-in games.

“This is a perfect opportunity to bring everybody here and enjoy the game. Hopefully we have enough interest we can really keep doing this year after year,” Julie Doherty, the sport development coordinator for the City of Kitchener, said.

“What’s really cool about this festival is people are going to be able to pick up a paddle and play right on the streets. We’re closing down King Street and we are setting up three pop up Pickleball courts right on King and they are going to be open to anybody to play.”

Doherty said pickleball is a booming sport in the region, which gave the city the idea to host the festival.

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“We’ve got some elite players coming to play and some pro players coming to play between six to eight, so that’s the chance for people to see Pickleball in its fine form,” added Doherty.

People can also expect pickleball vendors, food trucks, live music and a beer garden. The event is family friendly.

It starts at 2 p.m. and runs until 8 p.m. on Tuesday. King Street West will be closed from College Street to Young Street from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. for all the smashing action.

The event will also host a battle of the downtown Kitchener businesses, which includes some recognizable faces during the first hour.

“The staff at the City of Kitchener have pulled together a couple of teams — our councillors and our local MPPs — also playing in the Battle of Downtown Kitchener Businesses,” said Doherty.

She added that they are seeing a huge increase and interest in people wanting to play or learn to play Pickleball in the city.

Community open play is scheduled from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. with the professional Pickleball players taking to the courts in the evening.

More information about the event can be found on the City of Kitchener website.