This story has been updated to reflect a new construction timeline for the pickleball courts.

After less than four years, Wichita State’s pickleball courts are set to be demolished and rebuilt in a different location. 

The courts located between Wilkins Stadium and the Heskett Center will be torn down as part of the construction of a new softball practice facility.

Emily Patterson, the university’s executive director of facilities planning, wrote in an email that three new pickleball courts will be built “in the open grass area east of Hubbard/west of Heskett/north of Lindquist.”

Initially, construction was expected to start in August. According to John Lee, director of Campus Recreation, construction is more likely to start in mid-September.

Additionally, the new courts will include lighting, so they can be used in the dark. 

“This is part of the area that will be dedicated to outdoor recreation in the full master plan build-out,” Patterson wrote.

The master plan outlines the university’s goals for the next ten years, including the construction of new buildings and other facilities. 

The pickleball courts were first built in 2021 as part of the Heskett Center’s Outdoor Sports Complex.