Commission Unanimously Backs Country Club Pickleball Courts, Sending Redesign to Council

The Indian Wells Planning Commission voted 5-0 on Sept. 24, 2026, to recommend that the City Council approve six pickleball courts at Indian Wells Country Club. The council rejected an earlier version 3-2 in 2025. This time, the club returns with a relocated site, no lights, shorter hours and a noise study showing levels well under the city standard. Commissioners added one new condition, a signage requirement, before sending the project back to the council.

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• 5-0 recommendation for six pickleball courts at 46000 Club Drive
• Redesign drops stadium lighting, cuts play to 8 a.m.-5 p.m. and moves courts away from the driving range
• Noise study projects 44.6 decibels at the nearest home, against a 55 dBA standard
• Commission narrows four proposed add-on conditions to signage alone
• Three club members spoke in support; no opponents spoke at the hearing

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Pickleball Plan Returns With Fewer Lights, Less Noise

The basics: The item was Resolution PC-2026-02, recommending a modified conditional use permit (CUP 2-90-05) and design review for up to six courts. The package includes an acoustic barrier, parking, drainage and landscaping. A conditional use permit allows a use that is not automatically allowed in a zone, subject to specific conditions.

Why it matters: Noise from the 2025 proposal drew heavy opposition, and the council turned it down. The new plan is the club's answer, and the commission's unanimous vote gives the council a cleaner record to consider.

Where things stand: Community Development Director Jon Berg set the scene: "The council did actually deny this project back in 2025 in a vote of 3 to 2." That version sat on the driving-range tee area, with a 12-foot barrier, standard equipment, stadium lighting and 8 a.m.-8 p.m. play.

The new courts sit southwest of the clubhouse in the golf and recreation zone. That siting became possible after the council rescinded the golf course overlay through Ordinance 770 on June 18, 2026. The redesign includes:

• A 10-foot sound fence and a 20-foot golf net
• Mandatory quiet paddles and balls
• No lighting, with play from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• A reservation system to monitor compliance

Staff made all of these mandatory conditions of approval.

The noise math: The study measured background noise of 35.7 to 61.7 dBA over 24 hours. It also tested sound on site with speakers. At the worst-case home, Berg said, "the projected noise level would be 44.6 decibels over that hour period." No homes fell inside the 55 dBA band. The nearest home is 400 feet away. Staff compared the plan with eight existing pickleball facilities in the city, most of which are lighted and run longer hours.

Staff also acknowledged that the courts will still be audible. Commissioner Lax put it plainly: "Compliance with the ordinance does not mean the courts will be inaudible." Lax added that the record contained no expert rebuttal: "I don't see any expert opinions to debate any of our findings that staff has found." Commissioner Bouffard said his own community's study matched: "I was very happy to see that our sound analysis came out almost exactly like this one."

Parking and permits: The courts take 21 spaces from the clubhouse lot. An Urban Crossroads study found 251 spaces needed, 227 for existing uses and 24 for pickleball, against 302 remaining. "So there is a surplus of 51 spaces even with all the uses that are there and the proposed pickleball use," Berg said. Vice Chair Snellenberger said the lot can feel tight on Saturday mornings but accepted the study. Staff recommended a CEQA Class 3 exemption under Section 15303, which covers small new structures. Staff cited similar approvals in Rancho Mirage, Gilroy, Santa Rosa and Ontario.

Who showed up: Club member Marilyn McNeil, a former university physical education professor and athletics administrator, cited 311% growth in pickleball participation over three years and a 42% share of women players. Public commenter Rick Waddell asked that the club not be held to a stricter standard than other clubs. Kim Temple, a club member and resident, said the revision resolves earlier noise and communication concerns.

Dennis Coker, representing the applicant, said the club is the only country club in the city without pickleball courts. "This is not the same project we originally brought forward," he said. Coker sent certified letters to homes within 500 feet, reached 916 members through a newsletter and met with residents. The commission also received written comments from 15 named residents, but their positions were not described.

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Four Proposed Conditions Become One

Why it matters: The debate decided how much monitoring the city will require of the club once the courts open. The answer: very little beyond staff's conditions, with city complaint enforcement as the backstop.

Where things stand: Vice Chair Snellenberger moved staff's recommendation as is, seconded by Commissioner Bouffard. Commissioner Lax offered a substitute motion that added four conditions:

• Quarterly compliance reporting to the city, "verifying use of quiet paddles and quiet balls"
• Annual third-party noise monitoring at the club's expense
• Mandatory signage
• A written protocol for responding to complaints

Berg pointed to Conditions 10 and 11, which already cover enforcement and maintenance. Under those conditions, noncompliance is a "violation of the CUP, and may be subject to enforcement pursuant to the Indian Wells Municipal Code, including administrative citations, nuisance abatement, modification, or suspension or revocation of the CUP as applicable."

City Attorney Todd Leishman explained the options: "If the majority of the commission is satisfied with the conditions that John just pointed out, then you would just need to move staff's recommendation."

The other side: Bouffard questioned the value of the extra requirements. "The quarterly reporting, it's them reporting on themselves, so I don't know how valuable that would be," he said. On noise testing, he asked: "But if there's no complaints, why should they have to do a third-party noise survey?" Lax's substitute died without a second. Bouffard then moved staff's recommendation plus signage about mandatory quiet equipment, seconded by Commissioner Lee.

Snellenberger pushed from the opposite direction, questioning whether the limits were too strict: "Why should they not be able to play pickleball until 8 or 9 o'clock at night?" Berg answered: "The city isn't putting this restriction on them. They have voluntarily offered to design the project without lighting." He added that no photometric study had been done, so any future lighting request would require a CUP amendment.

Decisions and stakeholder impacts: The substitute motion passed by roll call. (For: 5 — Lee, Bouffard, Lax, Vice Chair Snellenberger, Chair Welch; Against: 0; Absent: 0.) "I definitely think that the country club overdelivered on accommodating the people that were opposed," said Chair Welch. Lee praised the process and said the new proposal responded to residents' concerns.

Club members gain courts under the permit. Neighbors get daytime-only play, quiet equipment rules and a code-enforcement path, but not the routine monitoring Lax sought. Any future push for lights would trigger a new public process.

What's next: The recommendation goes to the City Council, which will decide whether the project proceeds. No council hearing date was announced.

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Minor Items

• Cocoon project: Berg said the application is advancing toward the Planning Commission and City Council. He said he could not discuss specifics.
• New faces: A new vice chair and a newly appointed commissioner were seated. The agenda was approved on a Bouffard motion, seconded by Lee.
• Events ahead: Staff flagged the Epson Tour and the Women's Tennis Association event at the Tennis Gardens.
• Farmers market: A Thursday farmers market starts Oct. 1 at Wellspring Church.

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Looking Ahead

Watch for the pickleball permit on an upcoming City Council agenda. The council's 2025 split was 3-2, so a single vote could decide the outcome. Residents who want to weigh in should track council agendas and submit comments before that hearing.