Kris Miller was a Division I gymnast who struggled to find an outlet for her competitive nature and athleticism after her career ended decades ago. Then she found pickleball.

“Through most of my adult years, when I was raising my family, I didn’t have a sport to play,” Miller said. “To me, getting back to some friendly competition has been really exciting.”

When Dinks Pickleball opened its doors for the first time the night before Thanksgiving on Nov. 22, within 30 minutes, all 13 courts of Central Iowa’s newest and largest pickleball facility were packed with players. 

Dinks has been a refuge for people like Miller, who said they’re drawn to the sport for its accessibility and the tightknit community around it. 

Co-owner David Lanning said prior to Dinks, Des Moines’ pickleball community had been starved for an indoor facility dedicated to the sport, which is a hybrid between tennis and badminton. By the end of the first month, 800 members had signed up. By late January, memberships were up to 1,100, he said.

Located inside the former Kohl’s at Merle Hay Mall, the new facility boasts 13 professional-grade courts and is open from 6 a.m. to midnight, 365 days a year. Its quick success highlights the surging popularity of pickleball and the growing demand for indoor facilities in Central Iowa.

Lanning, his wife, Bailey Saal-Lanning, and co-owners Bill and Deb Douglass knew they’d have the support of the community before they began the renovation. The four are all avid players who met on the court.

“The cool thing about pickleball is once you play, you want to play more,” David Lanning said. “For some people, that ends up in taking over a 73,000-square-foot building and building 13 courts because you like playing so much.”

The conversion

The group took ownership of the former retail location on Aug. 9, 2023, and were issued a building permit valued at $728,145 in November. 

Contractors gutted the department store space from floor to ceiling. The floors were covered with six layers of a special type of paint embedded with silica sand to mimic the traction of an outdoor court. Each court is fully enclosed and individually accessible, a major perk for serious players, Lanning said. 

The business uses a membership model. Players sign up for annual plans, similar to those of a 24/7 gym. Three tiers, ranging from $45 to $195, get you access to the courts during open play hours and events. Higher-tiered members pay extra for the privilege of booking court time in advance.

“Pickleball is not a highly profitable venture,” Lanning said. “That’s why you see a lot of these organizations that have pickleball as their draw, but where they’re driving income is the higher-profit items like liquor.”

The players

Unlike its competitors, Dinks is solely dedicated to pickleball play. 

To make up for this lack of income, the owners keep costs as low as possible. At the moment, there are no employees. Instead, members get a unique key code to unlock the door, and have the option to participate in a volunteer system to help maintain the facility. 

For die-hard players, forgoing some of the amenities is worth it to have a space to play. 

“[Lanning] has an advantage with the pickleball community,” said Steve Stone, an Iowa-based ambassador for USA Pickleball. “That’s because of our geographical location. Having an indoor place with 13 permanent courts … is something that everybody was happy to see, without having to go to a tennis facility and pay $10 to $15 an hour to play or put up with tennis people who still don’t quite like pickleball.”

Dinks’ members said that it’s the most affordable option to play the sport they love.

Miller plays with the same group every week, including 32-year-old Amelia McGee, who is at least 30 years younger than the rest of her team. They say they’re one of many multigenerational groups that play at Dinks. 

Before settling into their new home, the group bounced between free outdoor courts and Smash Park, a venue for drinks, food and games in West Des Moines. 

Their experience is a common one. Like many other states, Iowans’ demand for pickleball courts, especially indoors during the winter months, far exceeds the supply. 

Last year, Business Insider reported that more than 25,000 new courts would need to be built to keep up with current and predicted demand for America’s fastest-growing sport. 

In Central Iowa, players have some options for four- and eight-court facilities at private gyms and public parks. Organizations are still hesitant to invest in dedicated courts, according to Stone.

“Depending on who you talk to, there’s between 6 million and 36 million people out there in America that play pickleball, and 78,000 members of USA Pickleball,” Stone said. “Without a doubt, the recreational organization for pickleball is far greater than people can imagine.”

Earlier this year, Forbes reported on what has become a nationwide trend of converting unused retail spaces into pickleball facilities like Dinks. 

According to Forbes, it’s a great fit for many reasons — big box stores often have the large footprint and cement floors that are the foundation of an indoor pickleball court. These conversions also offer a solution to the noise problems that plague the sport’s outdoor courts. 

Locally, Dinks is one of several experience-based businesses that are replacing retail shops at Merle Hay, including an indoor kids’ play center, a smash room, a virtual reality arcade and a proposed arena for the Buccaneers hockey team. 

Lanning said this shift in focus from retail to experiences was a major appeal when choosing where to set up shop. 

“There’s a variety of things here you wouldn’t necessarily expect to find in a mall,” Lanning said. “Instead of Merle Hay Mall, it should be ‘Merle Hay Entertainment District.’”

Lanning hopes that as Dinks’ membership grows, it will increase traffic to the rest of the mall, too. For now, though, he’s focused on his customers. 

Last month, Dinks hosted 160 players in their first tournament. Lanning is looking forward to developing leagues, hosting more events and tournaments, and finding the right balance between court reservations and open play.

“It’s not just a facility to play pickleball,” Lanning said. “The people involved are all interconnected, and there’s a lot of good, true friendships that will be formed. We’re trying to be the hub for that community.”