Northampton Township
Six new pickleball courts at Northampton Township’s Municipal Park started below the surface: old asphalt out, drainage and new asphalt in. Before your court gets new color, find out which kind of job it needs.
Local courts
Richboro isn’t a borough or a township of its own. It’s one of the communities of Northampton Township, along with Holland and Churchville, and the township’s 2014 parks plan says residents identify more with places like these than with the township itself. Northampton covers about 26 square miles, with the Neshaminy Creek along its entire northeastern edge, and part of Tyler State Park lies in Richboro. Ace Court Surfacing works on tennis and pickleball courts in Richboro, Holland, Churchville and the rest of the township, from a single backyard court to a row of association courts, and calls go to Bill Ferguson, based here in Bucks County.
The township’s project at Municipal Park shows the two halves of court work. Underneath, the old asphalt came out, and subsurface drainage and new asphalt went in. That half is paving. On top, the township’s contractor applied a playing surface and striped the lines. That top half is surface work: crack repair and leveling, acrylic resurfacing and color, line striping, and pickleball conversions and layouts. The American Sports Builders Association says every crack repair method buys a court some time, but a long-term fix means reconstruction. Which half your own court needs is the first thing to settle with Bill.
Local conditions
By the township’s 1981–2010 climate averages, the typical night drops below freezing from December through February and sits near 32°F in March, while afternoons climb above freezing. Water in an open crack can freeze and thaw all winter, and ice takes more room than water. One coating maker advises a spring inspection for cracks that have appeared or reopened. Fill them before the next winter.
Tyler State Park, with its mature forest, reaches into Richboro. A court near woods, or under trees of your own, collects leaves each fall, and leaves left lying can stain the color and feed mildew. Clear them often, then mind where they go: the township asks residents never to rake leaves into or near storm drains, ditches or creeks. Keep the court’s drains and swales clear, too.
Resurfacing and new lines stay on your existing pavement. A new pickleball pad or a wider court means new paving, and Northampton’s zoning code has a say. It counts the land a home court covers toward the lot’s impervious surface ratio, keeps courts out of front yards, and sets playing surfaces over 1,000 square feet at least 15 feet from rear and side property lines.
Start here
Unlike the township’s rebuild at Municipal Park, no asphalt comes out. If your base is sound, resurfacing usually means a wash, cracks filled and low spots patched, then acrylic resurfacer, textured color coats per the maker’s spec and freshly measured lines on top.
The average winter night here drops below freezing three months running. Before it does, open cracks should be cleaned out and filled with acrylic crack filler and the low spots leveled; cracks that point to a failing base call for more than filler.
Where two basketball courts stood, the township laid out six pickleball courts. On a pad of your own, courts get fitted to the paving you have and run north to south where possible, with the kitchen (non-volley zone) marked 7 feet from each net.
Maybe not. Start with the cracks. The American Sports Builders Association calls hairline, alligator and shrinkage cracks surface cracks; most don’t affect play, though they get worse untreated. Structural cracks run down through the asphalt, and settlement cracks come from a poorly compacted or poorly drained subbase. Filling seals them for a while, and resurfacing covers the patchwork. A failed base needs paving work like the township’s. To sort out which kind you have, call Bill at 215-251-2984 and describe the cracks.
Yes, with some care. The township now calls the Civic Center’s lighted tennis courts adaptable for pickleball, though its 2014 parks plan urged careful thought before adding pickleball lines there. USTA guidance for blended lines allows up to two pickleball courts on one tennis court, painted a shade lighter than the court and stopped 3 inches short of the tennis lines. Each gets the kitchen (non-volley zone) 7 feet from its net. If nobody at your house plays tennis anymore, a full conversion gives pickleball the whole court.
Plan any lights alongside the resurfacing, not after it. Northampton’s zoning code requires lighting for a court the size of a tennis court to stand at least 15 feet from every property line, aimed down at the playing surface and shielded so light doesn’t spill next door. Set poles before new color goes down: the American Sports Builders Association notes radial cracks where light pole and fence post footings meet the asphalt. Call Bill at 215-251-2984 to fit the resurfacing around the pole work.