The New York Times on Pickleball and Noise Complaints

Be careful if your community is planning to open a pickleball court near you. It can be painfully loud--so loud that homeowners are filing lawsuits.

The New York Times wrote about it here...

Shattered Nerves, Sleepless Nights: Pickleball Noise Is Driving Everyone Nuts - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

...and so did a few other local news outlets scattered around the country, such as this:

Is pickleball louder than tennis? | kgw.com

I was pleased to see that the above article quotes an acoustics expert at a university, who explains that certain pitches or frequencies are more distressing than others, even if the decibel level is approximately the same. That's totally obvious to people like us who have tinnitus or hyperacusis, but it's not so obvious to the average person.

I really want the news media to continue doing news stories that educate the public about acoustics and noise exposure and hearing loss. Most people are indifferent to this subject until they have an ear injury... or until they have a pickleball court built across the street.

I just hope that all the news articles emphasize the medical aspects of noise exposure. Some pickleball enthusiasts may feel like they're being unfairly persecuted or that the homeowners are being intolerant killjoys, but the issue is not about petty homeowners spoiling everybody's fun, it's about reducing noise pollution and protecting physical and mental health.

 

I saw some news about that months back. People aren't happy about pickleball courts being put in within earshot of their neighborhoods. It's a higher pitched, more annoying sound than tennis.