One of the players reportedly involved described it like this: <\/p>\n
I kid you not, 20+ police officers came out and blocked the exits with their cars until every single person in the courts\/soccer\/basketball area was cited. There were probably at least 30+ people waiting to be cited until we were allowed to go.<\/p>\n
Commenters were quick to point out that playing pickleball at a public park close to midnight is rather excessive, especially in a crowd so big when loud music was reportedly involved. <\/p>\n
According to the Long Beach Post<\/a>, more than 40 citations were written for “loitering or remaining at a park after hours.”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Noise Complaints Close CA Town\u2019s New $1.5M Pickleball Courts<\/p>\n Despite numerous efforts to alleviate the problem \u2014 designated hours, encouraging quieter equipment, onsite signage, etc. \u2014 the courts are closed for good, effective immediately.<\/p>\n At the heart of the show of force were noise complaints levied by nearby residents. <\/p>\n The players contend the lights were on and the gates were open, though it does appear that there were signs posted saying the park hours are from dawn until dusk.<\/p>\n “I accept that we shouldn\u2019t have been there,” the Reddit poster conceded. “I\u2019m saying that using 20+ police officers for such a trivial thing and citing everyone seems extremely excessive and not a good use of the departments time and energy.”<\/p>\n Heads up: hundreds of thousands of pickleballers read our free newsletter. Subscribe here<\/a> for cutting edge strategy, insider news, pro analysis, the latest product innovations and more. <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/storage.ghost.io\/c\/45\/ce\/45ce2f4d-9511-4400-98d3-c405b89e366a\/content\/images\/thumbnail\/Martinez-CA-Parks-cb4bcd3a-f800-495c-b9ff-bbbca5bd84ed.jpg\")
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