Avera has announced plans to build the state’s largest pickleball facility. The health-care provider will construct 12 outdoor courts at its Avera on Louise campus in Sioux Falls.
Pickleball combines elements of tennis, badminton and ping-pong. It's played indoors or outdoors on a badminton-sized court with a slightly modified tennis net. Two or four players can play with simple equipment that involves paddles and a plastic ball with holes.
Jason Askew is executive director of Sports Medicine for Avera and said the organization wants to appeal to people of all ages.
"Being able to offer something for adults that is growing by leaps and bounds in popularity, both here in Sioux Falls and around the country, is a lot of fun to be able to announce," he said.
Askew said construction will take a few months, and Avera anticipates the courts will open to the public by early August.
The project is estimated to cost around $1.5 million. The courts will be open and free for public use.
