Lobbing one over the net has taken on a new meaning, with the grand opening of The Open in Calgary’s East Village.

The combination pickleball court and toilet facility has been months in the making, and the grand opening on Jan. 9 marks the first time the East Village has had permanent, publicly accessible toilets available since the closure of washrooms along the Riverwalk.

The $2.2 million project was envisioned by CMLC as a way to provide some relief and recreation for area residents and visitors. It is located next to the East Village community garden and dog park, along 6 Street and 7 Avenue SE.

“It was in response to looking at this growing sport that it is pickleball, and we’ve had some experience with that over the last year and a half with Pixel Park in the Culture and Entertainment District,” said CMLC Vice President of Communications and Strategic Partnerships, Clare LePan.

“What we were looking for is a type of amenity that is low barrier, so similar to The Bounce where you can come and play at The Bounce if you’ve got a ball with you at any time, seven days a week. Pickleball offers the same type of flexibility and experience doesn’t have to be programmed or booked in the same way.”

The court would also be the home of the new East Village pickleball club hosted by the East Village Neighbourhood Association, she said.

“With the league, we’re looking at how do we support that and encourage residents to come out. If it results in tournament-style events over the course of the year, then that’s great,” LePan said.

The other component, a washroom facility, was designed with providing social infrastructure alongside a community amenity.

The innovative design created by architects Public City won a 2024 Award of Merit by the Canadian Architects Awards of Excellence. It was described by juror and architect D’Arcy Jones as a sporty way of using a simple palette of colour and bold designs to exceed expectations.

The award also recognized the way the building improves the safety of washroom use by the public in the East Village.

“Public safety is addressed by reconsidering accepted conventions. One example is exposed washbasins against a glass wall to celebrate an everyday activity in a light-hearted, preformative way,” he wrote.

LePan said that throughout the design process, CMLC worked with the Calgary Police Service and social agency providers, along with safety experts to create a design that took into consideration best practices for crime prevention through environmental design.

Ward 7 Coun. Terry Wong said that there has been many lessons learnt about how to better place washrooms and where, and that The Open was an example of those discussions that came out of the Downtown Safety Leadership Table.

“The things that we get challenged with in council, is not only providing for the needs of community, but the essential needs of people. I hear this often from our senior population that come from other parts of the city who say, ‘I’d like to come downtown, but I hate the fact that I can’t find a washroom along the way.’ This is just a start to that program,” Wong said.

“Bringing pickleball and other activations here, it again establishes their community as a as a growing, vibrant destination. A place that people actually want to live, not just come and visit.”

Toilets and court usable by anyone and everyone

Each individual toilet is gender neutral and has a privacy door—but the main vestibule and hand washing station is open by windows to the outdoors.

“One of the primary considerations was safety. And looking at both, how do we create a facility that people feel comfortable walking into, utilizing the type of facility that it is, and keeping sight lines open so that it helps us address some of the challenges that we’ve learned can come with this type of infrastructure,” Said LePan.

“There’s other considerations from a safety perspective as it relates to the types of materials that we used, how they are better supported for sort of frequent washing and maintenance that may be required, and also just adding to the vibrancy the community, which really ties into the colour palette and the type of branding that you see on the exterior of the facility.”

Safety and cleanliness, she said would be enhanced through a partnership with RadiCare Ventures, which will be staffing the washrooms with two attendants in a $345,000 pilot project that was awarded through a competitive RFP.

“It allows us to both on board the program and all of the materials and facilities that have gone to support that, as well as all of the operations staffing and operational requirements for the building for those first 12 months,” LePan said.

RadiCare Managing Director and Co-Founder Bill Zheng said that his firm has provided staff with an extensive training program that includes custodian training alongside de-escalation techniques used to prevent social disorder in the washrooms.

“This comprehensive training ensures that RadiCare’s team has the confidence and expertise to support vulnerable populations with dignity and respect while ensuring the safety of the general public,” he said.

Zheng said that the staff selected for this pilot project have experience with experience with systematic vulnerability, and that the staff that RadiCare employed throughout the downtown core come from vulnerable populations like those individuals with addiction history, homelessness, mental health, criminal justice history, refugees or immigrants.

“All of the staff members have been referred for nonprofit partners who have important coaches that are supporting them through this journey transitioning to here. Internally we’ve hired a washroom attendant coordinator on a part-time basis to supervise the staff members here,” he said.

The washrooms are initially set to be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily, while the court is set to be open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.

LePan said that those hours would be re-evaluated later in the year as the days get longer.