The pickleball boom is taking a huge leap forward in Winnipeg.
Local entrepreneur Nicholas Rush and four partners have secured a lease for a 24,000-square-foot facility that will house eight indoor pickleball courts and a clubhouse for other amenities.
The facility, located in the Rocke Development Business Park at 500 Caron Road in Headingley and dubbed the Pickleball Club of Winnipeg, is currently under construction.
MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS Nicholas Rush, majority owner, at the construction site of Winnipeg’s first pickleball-only multicourt indoor facility at 500 Caron Road.
Rush is hoping the province’s first pickleball-only space will be open for business by Jan. 1.
“There’s still that perception that pickleball is a game for old people and broken people,” said Rush, 48. “It can be a lot more than that… This is a sport that has obviously has taken off — it’s super accessible to a wide population, from seniors to kids, and whether you’re super athletic or you’ve had some injuries or you have other health conditions, you can play.”
Invented in 1965, the game combining elements of tennis, badminton and table tennis has experienced rapid growth worldwide over the last decade. That popularity has found its way to Manitoba, where the demands for court time have put a strain on available court time.
In February, Prairie Badminton co-owners Ryan Giesbrecht and Justin Friesen invested $200,000 to add two indoor pickleball courts to their nine-court badminton operation in Transcona.
Rush, meanwhile, had contemplated a pickleball-only facility since 2020 and the pieces finally fell into place earlier this year.
Although he would have preferred 10 to 12 indoor courts, he settled for eight to keep his costs lower while also intending to add four outdoor courts adjacent to the building next summer.
Rush is projecting a single-player cost of $5-6 per hour with memberships purchased at the PCW.
With 120 parking stalls, Rush believes the site just east of the Perimeter Highway and in close proximity to Charleswood and the “pickleball belt” in St. James is conveniently located for easy access.
“Some places are cheaper — the community centres, churches — so can I compete with $2 or $3 an hour?” he said. “My break even is higher, but I still come from developing the grassroots. That was always my thing.
“So I do want it to be accessible, as long as we’re staying afloat and we can provide a service. That’s the happy medium we want to be in. I’m not looking to get rich in two years, right? This is a longterm project.”
SUPPLIED Rendering of the proposed layout for the city’s first pickleball-only multicourt indoor facility.
Rush, who started a local pickleball group on Facebook to help gauge interest in an indoor facility, plans to have the PCW’s website online by November.
Earlier in his location search, he explored the possibility of copying an American trend of setting up indoor pickleball courts in unleased strip malls.
“I talked to various landlords about spaces, and I was told, ‘No,’ because they’re looking for retail type things that have a shorter turnover for the parking,” said Rush. “Whereas, when people play pickleball it’s less intense and they’ll play for three or four hours and then that’s taking that (parking) spot up.”
Children or grandchildren of members won’t need memberships to play at the PCW.
“I want to really emphasize kids’ programming,” said Rush.
“I was a badminton coach for 25 years. I grew up as a kid at the Canoe Club in the summertime on the outdoor tennis courts and those kids are still my friends right now. I’m 48 now and the people I played tennis with at the club when I was 10 are still my friends.”
Rush and his partners may not stop with one facility.
“My plan has always been if this goes well we’ll be doing another one in three to five years on the other side of the city,” he said.
Mike Sawatzky
Reporter
Mike Sawatzky is a sports reporter at the Free Press. He has been working at the newspaper since 2003. Read more about Mike.
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