New pickleball courts now open in Rotary Park

LAKE MILLS — Pickleball players in Lake Mills can now enjoy four new pickleball courts at Rotary Park. The courts are already busy with players at many times throughout the day and week.

“This was a grassroots effort from the start, and like all grassroots efforts, it took a lot of people and time to get it done,” Scott Tellefson, one of the project members, said at the dedication July 10.

Tellefson shared that many individuals and groups donated to make this project possible. The process started in 2022 with the Rotary Club. There was a small grant for a community project, and after talking with the city parks manager, Eric Schreiner, the Club decided the best course forward was to build permanent pickleball nets.

At the time, there were just two courts with no nets and old asphalt, but demand was growing. Lake Mills has an app to organize when people want to play — and over 200 members use it regularly. Tellefson said there will frequently be 20-30 players at a given time during the week.

After getting quotes, Tellefson said the fundraising committee learned they would need to raise $18,000. Many community members decided to get involved and the funds were raised in two months.

Major contributions included $10,000 from the Lake Mills EMS board, $3000 from the Lake Mills Community Foundation and $2000 from the Lake Mills Rotary Club, along with many more individual and group donations.

The next goal for the organizers is to ask the city council to include pickleball courts in the budget, so they can add a fence around the courts in 2025.