The Downers Grove Park District has converted center courts at McCollum Park into eight permanent pickleball courts, adding to eight existing courts on the park's south section.
The project also added shade structures next to the pickleball and tennis courts and resurfaced the existing basketball courts, according to the park district. The center courts had previously served as flexible-use space. Three tennis courts in the north section remain.
The park district cited "the continued popularity of pickleball" as the reason for the conversion.
Nationally, about 24.3 million people actively play pickleball in the United States, a player base that has expanded roughly 700% since 2016, according to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association's 2026 report, as cited by Blueprint, the Downers Grove South High School student newspaper.
The court conversion is one piece of a broader 2026 improvement plan at McCollum Park. According to the park district's 80th-anniversary overview, the updates also include a new playground, an updated fitness area and enhanced accessible game courts. The district purchased the McCollum Park property in 1972 and developed it into a premier athletic complex between 1982 and 1985.
Beyond McCollum, the park district lists outdoor pickleball courts at Doerhoefer Park, 4101 Venard Rd. Courts are also available at the Cathy Mahoney Recreation Center, 4500 Belmont Rd., where a pass is required for open gym.
Private facilities have moved in too. Pickled!, a club that opened in early spring 2024, offers open play, memberships and private lessons, Blueprint reported Nov. 11. Nathan Patrick-Taylor, founder and coach at Pickled!, told Blueprint the sport draws players across age groups.
"It's easy to pick up. It's difficult to master, but it's easy to play and people get what they want out of it," Patrick-Taylor said.
Patrick-Taylor, a former tennis player, believes total player numbers will keep climbing. But he expects the rate of growth to level off as more clubs open and the sport loses its novelty.
Dreama Mueller, a member of a local women's pickleball league that practices at Pickled!, told Blueprint the sport has given her both a workout and a social circle in retirement. She cautioned that newcomers should not underestimate the physical demands.
"I see a lot of people get hurt. Running after the ball, snapped tendons, people fall," Mueller said.
The park district's 2026 plans for McCollum Park also include a playground and fitness area that are still part of the improvement project.
