Pickleball in paradise.
It’s not a Jimmy Buffett song — it’s the concept behind the newly opened indoor pickleball facility in Lincoln Park where palm fronds and cabanas flank eight indoor courts.
It’s called SPF (short for Social, Pickleball and Fun — but also sunscreen) and located at 2121 N. Clybourn Ave.
“We wanted to create an experience that went beyond just pickleball and gave people that getaway vibe,” said co-owner Rich Green, 42.
Pingpong tables, shuffleboard, Pop-a-Shot, air hockey, cornhole and “glow in the dark” pickleball under a black light are a few of the options available in the 42,000-square-foot space that previously housed Brooklyn Boulders, an indoor climbing facility.
A cafe counter near the entrance offers sandwiches, salads and coffee. A full bar is nearby. Slushy drinks can be ordered to cabanas via QR code. And a full kitchen is slated to open later this year in partnership with the folks behind Honey Butter Fried Chicken that will offer something akin to a “surf shack” menu.
But perhaps the most appealing aspect for picklers: They won’t have to compete for court time with tennis players — a common source of friction that’s plagued the pickleball community in Chicago as players seek out public spaces (mostly tennis courts) that double as pickleball courts.
“We don’t get the glares from the tennis people. It’s ours. This is ours,” Antigone Polite, 60, a scientist from Lincoln Park, said during a break from a pickle game at SPF.
“We knew there was this pent-up demand for the indoor pickle experience in the city, so we wanted to deliver the eight courts in winter as quickly as we could,” Green said, noting that a ninth court will be added in the coming weeks, as will more cabanas.
No membership is required.
Open play — the sports equivalent of pickup basketball — is offered for $8 or $10 an hour, depending on whether it’s during peak or off-peak hours. Courts can also be reserved for $40 or $60 an hour.
SPF has a membership program for $59 a month — or $599 for the year — that offers priority reservations, use of locker rooms and saunas, and discounts on food and drinks. Membership will be capped at 500, and nearly 475 people had already signed up, Green said.
“It can’t get better than this place,” said Sarah Rynbrandt, 33, a vascular ultrasound technician from Roscoe Village who plays pickleball 10 times a week — a not uncommon amount among legions of hardcore picklers.
“This is just spectacular. Phenomenal,” said Ed Barnett, 87, of Lincoln Park, who plays three times a week. He normally plays during warm-weather months at Mandrake Park, 3858 S. Cottage Grove Ave., or Fosco Park, 1312 S. Racine Ave.
During winter, many picklers play in the gymnasiums of Chicago Park District field houses, but the wood surface isn’t ideal, they say.
Courts at SPF are made with a material used by the Professional Pickleball Association, which provides better bounce and a bit of cushion that’s easier on the joints, Green said.
The noise from pickleball (the whack of a racket on a hollow ball) can be a nuisance to neighbors in public spaces, but is confined to the SPF building. Measures were even taken to soften the acoustics so people hanging out courtside can comfortably chat, Green said.
A total of 170 parking spaces are available for customers. And professional players are on hand to teach lessons.
An introductory program for kids has been dubbed the Cucumber Club. Parents can inconspicuously watch from a balcony viewing area.
Green, who lives less than a block away from SPF and has a background in real estate law, had a eureka moment while playing pickleball with his wife, Lisa Rella, at a facility in Fort Worth, Texas, that offered ambiance, food and play.
“Next to us was a grandmother playing with her grandkid, and a bachelorette party was playing next to us on other side, and we were like, ‘What kind of concept is doing this... bringing so many types of people into a facility, and they’re all having the best times of their lives, and everyone is interacting in some way?’ ” Green said.
He pitched the idea to two friends from his days at Duke University, who ultimately signed on as co-owners.
One was David Galst, who has a background creating “experiential fun houses,” like Luna Park, an amusement park on Coney Island. The other is Chris Boston, who has experience in construction and finance.
Both live in New York but have been frequent visitors to Chicago in recent months as they prepared SPF for opening.
Before greenlighting the project, Green checked out pickleball locations on two road trips — one along the Eastern Seaboard, the other across the Midwest — with his 10-year-old son tagging along.
Another detail that factored into the decision: Chicago has been way behind the rest of the country in building courts to accommodate what’s been widely hailed as the fastest-growing sport in the country.
The park district offers more than 100 pickleball courts at about 40 parks and field house gymns.
A few private businesses in the city operate courts, like Big City Pickle and the School House. And several private fitness clubs do also, but nothing is comparable to what SPF brings to Chicago.
”We saw the public data on the shortage of courts . . . and there are still so many people who haven’t even been exposed to the game. Why is Chicago so behind? I don’t know; it doesn’t make any sense,” Green said.
