Indoor pickleball courts to open in Pittsburgh Warehouse
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Bryan Wigginton and his wife, Alexa Gervasi, started playing pickleball two years ago as an alternative to sitting on the couch in their Polish Hill home and watching TV together.
What started as a way to be active has now evolved into a new business. Their indoor pickleball facility, The Pickleball Warehouse, is set to open this summer in Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood.
A soft opening will take place during the last weekend of June, with a grand opening a few weeks later, the couple said.
“Whether indoor or outdoor, there is a need for more pickleball courts,” said Gervasi, 32. “In particular, indoor courts, because the weather here is so crazy and unpredictable.”
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The Pickleball Warehouse, an 80,000-square-foot facility, will feature at least 15 full-size courts and a handful of half-courts. There will be a fully stocked pro shop, coffee bar, lounge area and, eventually, an in-house kitchen and bar.
As of now, Gervasi, who works as an attorney at Kraus Jenkins, said popular pickleball hubs in the city include Washington’s Landing, Schenley Park, Blue Slide Park, Bud Hammer Park and Allegheny Commons in the North Side — but they’re all outdoors.
“Any one of those that you go to, you’re gonna wait in a line — that’s how popular (pickleball is),” she said.
Here’s a sneak peak into The Pickleball Warehouse — which will have at least 15 indoor pickleball courts once it’s completed.
The courts are set to open this summer in Homewood, making it Pittsburgh’s largest indoor pickleball facility @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/QtutaLGn6f
— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) June 18, 2024
Wigginton, 35, said in order to play indoors, Pittsburgh locals either have to play in a basketball gym, which is a different flooring material, or drive 30 to 40 minutes outside the city.
A list of pickleball venues is kept online at Southwestern PA Pickleball Directory, maintained by Larry Gioia of Side’aht Pickleball.
Another indoor facility, Pickleball Harbor, is set to open in July in Murrysville.
Pickleball interest has skyrocketed in recent years, and the sport is still on the rise.
“It’s accessible,” Gervasi said, which is why she believes so many people are drawn to pickleball. “I’ve never played a sport in my life, and I was able to pick it up.”
Wigginton was a schoolteacher for over 10 years and, until April, worked at the Montessori school in the Pittsburgh Public Schools. He left to pursue The Pickleball Warehouse full time.
“It’s addicting,” he said. “You want to play constantly — I play just about every day.”
The pickleball community is tight-knit, the couple said. And the sport is becoming more popular for corporate events as well, as they called it “the new golf.”
“We have pickleball friends that we see more than our normal friends,” Wigginton said, and they have multiple active pickleball group chats.
The social aspect of pickleball is “essential” to the game, according to Gervasi.
“You sit out sometimes for a game, and you chat and get to know each other,” Wigginton said. “So you really forge relationships.”
The couple started renovating The Pickleball Warehouse in May. With the exception of the floors, they are completing everything themselves.
The ideal surface for pickleball courts is the same as hard tennis courts — concrete or asphalt with acrylic surfacing mixed with sand, which gives the perfect texture, they said.
“I’ve done construction most of my life for other people,” Wigginton said. “It’s nice to do it for yourself.”
During the renovation process, they’ve come across some quirky aspects of the old building, which formerly housed The Wheel Mill, an indoor BMX park.
“This is a Pittsburgh warehouse, and we’re trying to lean into that where we can,” Wigginton said. “I think that’s going to pay off, and it’s going to be a really cool aesthetic.”
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For example, the couple invited local graffiti artists into the warehouse to create artwork for the new facility.
With budget savings from completing renovations largely by themselves, the couple believe they can keep memberships affordable.
“We don’t want to have to charge people a whole bunch of money to play here,” Wigginton said.
Opening hours have not been firmly set. Gervasi said if people have preferences, they should let the couple know.
“We plan to beta-test our hours for a while,” she said. “At the end of the day, we want to be open when people want to be playing.”
Wigginton said he’s hoping The Pickleball Warehouse will bring more business to Homewood, which he noted is a traditionally underserved area.
“We want to see everybody succeed here,” he said.
In the future, the couple is looking to host professional pickleball tournaments and have summer camps available for kids.
“Our goal is to have an inclusive open space for people,” Wigginton said. “No one should be intimidated to come here and play.”