In short, there would not be any pickleball courts without CTPA. The agreement that was worked out with the township was that member's fee would pay for all the capital & operational costs using no taxpayers money. Since then CTPA via it's fees and members donations has succeeded to meet and exceed this agreement. In exchange CTPA provides adult entertainment & exercise to well over 1500 adults and continue to teach the game of pickleball to those interested in learning. CTPA is part of Cranberry Parks & Rec department but operates under a unique agreement that allows the volunteer to manage its own programming meeting to the township's guidelines.
Why do I have to pay a fee to play pickleball especially as a Cranberry resident who pay taxes? First no taxes are used for pickleball. CTPA pays 100% of the operational & capital cost of the courts , including paying to the township additional fees above & beyond for any staff support. CTPA is a volunteer organization with over 150 members volunteering over 8500 hours per year. In short, CTPA generates revenue for the township to help subsidize the Parks & Rec budget. A Cranberry resident has to pay to golf or to swim so charging a fee is not an unusual practice.
Why do I have to join CTPA to play pickleball? It's a very common practice to charge a fee. For your kids to play in the parks you must pay CTAA (baseball & softball); SVSC (soccer); SVJFA (football); Dek Hockey; Volleyball - all charge per participant or team, by the season. Look to Cranberry Twp Park & Rec Program schedule and every program offered has a fee. The CTPA membership fee is very modest.
Why can I play tennis or shoot basketball for free and must pay to play pickleball? Because those courts are paid 100% with taxpayers money and no programming or scheduling is done on these courts. In the case of pickleball, CTPA provides 16 hour/day, seven days a week of programming for its members and pays for 100% of all their operational and capital costs. All programming is done by volunteers. CTPA has taught the game of pickleball to over 1200 students and continue to teach 300-400 new students/year. Again all with volunteers.