The future of pickleball – and pickleball noise – at Whitefish Bay’s Klode Park now has some clarity after the village board inked a new compromise on March 2, following months of discussion.
Whitefish Bay’s Village Board voted 5-2 to approve an ordinance amending city code that roughly halves pickleball play time during peak seasons at Klode Park on the northeast side of the village to address ongoing neighbor concerns about noise.
The new hours were hashed out in a small working group consisting of both pickleball players and neighbors convened by Village Manager Kelsey McElroy-Anderson to develop a compromise.
Neighbors around the park, many of whom live just 50 feet from the park, have been raising concerns about pickleball noise at Klode for several years after two tennis courts were converted to four pickleball courts over five years ago.
The ping of pickleball play produces a uniquely piercing and repetitive sound that has led to contentious lawsuits and controversies across the entire country, including just north in Fox Point, as the sport has rapidly grown in popularity over the last few years.
At the same time, pickleball players say the sport is an intergenerational activity that promotes healthy lifestyles, builds community and encourages people to get outside and into the parks.
“This has been a long road,” Village President Kevin Buckley said at the start of the over two-hour discussion, which dozens of village residents were in attendance for and roughly 20 residents spoke at.
“I am not surprised that there are unhappy people here,” he said later in the meeting.
But that is often the nature of a successful compromise, which is greatly needed and has been painstakingly pursued, McElroy-Anderson said.
“There are not seven votes on this board to eliminate pickleball at Klode Park. There are not seven votes on this board to keep the hours exactly as they are,” she said.
“The goal was to try to bring the sides together and to get to a place that, quite honestly, no one liked, but everybody could at least tolerate.”
When can you play pickleball in the Village of Whitefish Bay, according to the new ordinance?
According to the new ordinance, pickleball will be permitted between May 1 and Oct. 15 during the following hours:
From Oct. 16 to April 30, pickleball will be permitted during the following hours:
The new hours take effect on May 1, 2026.
The board also voted 4-3 to purchase locks for the courts, using roughly $18,000 in 2025 surplus funds.
Village staff will continue to check in with neighbors of the park to ensure pickleball play doesn’t continue outside of permitted hours. If it does, the village could pursue additional changes, McElroy-Anderson said.
Whitefish Bay Village Board’s decision comes after months of discourse and village efforts to find a compromise
In mid 2025, the village limited playing time from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and installed some sound barriers, which cut the noise from 77 decibels to 66 decibels. But complaints persisted, and neighbors continued reporting that their quality of life was significantly impacted by the noise.
So in September 2025, the board sought a different compromise which would have limited pickleball play from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The board ultimately tabled a decision on the proposed hour change after lots of public comments, lengthy discussions and a desire to pursue a better compromise.
Village staff continued meeting with both pickleball players and neighbors and also convened a small working group with people on both sides to develop the new proposed compromise.
Throughout public comment at the meeting, residents on both sides of the issue thanked village staff, particularly the efforts of McElroy-Anderson, for taking the time to hear everyone out over the last several months.
What did trustees have to say?
The following trustees voted in favor of the new pickleball hours: Sam Dettmann, Jacob Haller, Brian Vanevenhoven, Anna Kasper and Buckley. Tara Serebin and Jay Saunders voted against the new hours, expressing desire for less or even no pickleball permitted.
Serebin and Saunders said they felt the village should never have allowed pickleball play to proliferate to this level since the beginning.
“No one needs to play pickleball. Everyone needs to sleep and have a good quality of life,” Saunders said.
Haller said he felt the widespread use of the park is a success, but acknowledged neighbors’ concerns as entirely legitimate.
“We have an opportunity to compromise,” Haller said. “I think we should take that opportunity and preserve this as a recreation, but also recognize neighbors’ needs.”
Vanevenhoven agreed: “The neighbors here did us a solid, frankly, and gave us the framework for a deal that they are willing to accept.”
“If the players don’t abide by the hours, we can always come back and reassess,” Vanevenhoven said later.
Editor’s note, 3/3/2026: This story was amended to accurately reflect the permitted winter pickleball hours.
Contact Claudia Levens at clevens@usatodayco.com. Follow her on X at @levensc13.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Whitefish Bay inks new pickleball compromise on hours of permitted play
Reporting by Claudia Levens, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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