Sartell Basketball Court To Stay, More Amenities Being Considered

SARTELL -- Sartell officials say a public basketball court in a residential neighborhood will stay where it is.

Last month, the council considered a proposal to swap the full basketball court, located in The Wilds neighborhood, with the pickleball and half-court basketball court planned for Watab Park.

The reason for the move was proposed as a solution to several complaints, including noise, offensive language, and public urination from neighbors.

City Administrator Anna Gruber says with many gyms shutdown due to COVID-19, many basketball players were looking for a place to play and The Wilds is the only full outdoor basketball court in Sartell.

A lot of them were college players that were home for the summer and looking for a place to play. Earlier this summer many of the neighboring parks were shut down, the YMCA was shut down, the colleges were shut down, so this was an opportunity for them to get out and play basketball. That's why we were seeing the higher demand.

The Wilds park is a city owned park that sits in the heart of a residential neighborhood.

Gruber says in speaking with residents, there remains a strong support to keep the court as is.

The neighbors use it a lot for basketball but also for roller hockey, which is why they appreciated the court. So they came together and said they want to keep the court there.

Staff feels there is a clear demand for more of these types of amenities so during Monday's meeting, the council will consider exploring other options to add a second full basketball court within the city as

Gruber adds since the Sartell Community Center has reopened a lot of the basketball traffic at The Wilds Park has decreased, as have the number of complaints.