Florida homeowners sue HOA over converted pickleball courts, citing noise and PTSD
Residents in an Apollo Beach community say a decision to turn clay tennis courts into pickleball courts has produced disruptive noise; county officials weigh sound rules as similar suits mount nationwide.
Homeowners in the Andalucia community in Apollo Beach, Florida, filed a lawsuit on Aug. 15 against their homeowners association after the HOA converted clay tennis courts into pickleball courts, saying the games have produced persistent noise that unsettles nearby neighbors, including military veterans who say the sounds could aggravate post-traumatic stress disorder.
Plaintiffs in the suit said some properties sit within 250 feet of the newly installed courts and described the repetitive, sharp pops of pickleball play as triggering. "Those unpredictable pops trigger a fight-or-flight response," said Lori Sessano, a combat veteran and one of the plaintiffs. Michael Wasielewski, a Vietnam veteran and resident, told local media he supported recreation but objected to what he called "continuous industrial-level noise" in a neighborhood not designed for it.
The dispute drew public attention at a Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners meeting on Aug. 20, where actor Robert Davi — known for roles in The Goonies and License to Kill — demonstrated the repetitive sound, imitating the ball’s pops and urging officials to act. The commission split on an initial motion to temporarily halt permits for new courts within 250 feet of homes, which failed on a 3-4 vote. A second motion directing county staff to research the spike in pickleball litigation and recommend appropriate sound ordinances and setback distances passed unanimously.
Commissioner Josh Wostal said the acoustic difference between tennis and pickleball helps explain complaints. He noted that "decibel levels exceed even our own noise ordinances in certain cases" because pickleball uses a solid paddle and ball on hard surfaces, producing louder, sharper impacts than hollow tennis rackets and softer balls on clay.
The Apollo Beach lawsuit is the first filed against an HOA in Hillsborough County, but it comes amid a wave of similar disputes across the United States. Officials and advocates cited by county leaders say at least 200 lawsuits related to pickleball and noise have been filed nationwide. Past cases include a 2022 lawsuit in Scottsdale, Arizona, where a couple sued their HOA after a tennis court was converted into two pickleball courts, and a 2020 suit in Austin, Texas, where homeowners challenged plans to build a pickleball court in common property.
Pickleball is among the fastest-growing sports in the U.S., prompting municipalities and community associations to create courts to meet demand. The Trust for Public Land has reported that the number of public pickleball courts in major metropolitan areas climbed about 650 percent in recent years, a growth that has sometimes outpaced local planning and noise-mitigation measures.
The rise in disputes over courts has fed broader criticism of homeowners associations. Residents living under HOA governance often pay monthly fees and face rules and fines for property maintenance, which some lawmakers and homeowners say can be onerous. State Rep. Juan Carlos Porras, a Republican from Miami, has called for eliminating what he described as "authoritarian boards" in parts of Florida, saying HOA authority requires greater accountability.
Hillsborough County commissioners asked staff to study appropriate sound ordinances, setback distances and other protections for neighborhoods as legal challenges continue. The county’s action reflects a larger push by local governments to balance the sport’s popularity with concerns about noise, community planning and residents’ health. There are an estimated 365,000 homeowners associations in the United States, housing roughly 30 percent of the population, and similar conflicts between common-area amenities and neighboring homeowners are likely to continue as demand for pickleball courts grows.