Hurlock, Maryland – The Dorchester County Council has given the green light to a recommendation by the Recreation and Parks Department to use annual Program Open Space grant funds to enhance pickleball facilities in the northern part of the county.
The plan includes resurfacing three tennis courts at the Hurlock Athletic Complex, with two of those courts being transformed into four pickleball courts. Additional projects, such as a disc golf course at Egypt Road Park in Cambridge, are also part of the funding request.
During the council meeting on November 19, 2024. Recreation and Parks Department Director Duc Trieu emphasized the county’s efforts to increase pickleball opportunities in the northern region. Discussions about adding pickleball courts have been ongoing for several months.
At the November 4, 2024 council meeting, officials unanimously approved the acquisition of land behind the Judy Center on Glasgow Street. This decision paves the way for the construction of six new pickleball courts in Cambridge.
This move followed a decision by the Dorchester County Board of Education three months earlier to resurface the Glasgow Tennis Courts, a project that prohibits adding pickleball lines for five years. The decision caused disappointment among local pickleball players, as it temporarily restricted their access to those courts.
Council member Pfeffer noted during the November 19 meeting that, since discussions about the Cambridge courts began, he has received numerous requests from residents in the northern part of the county who are eager to see more pickleball facilities in their area.
“So thank you for being proactive with that,” he told Trieu.
Trieu said the Hurlock Athletic Complex project will leave one of the three tennis courts on the site as a tennis court and the other two will be converted into four pickleball courts.