The first dinks and drops in play at the new East Bay Pickleball Club located on Market Street/Route 136 in Warren are likely only a few weeks away.

The club is situated over 25,000 square feet in the now remodeled former East Bay Educational Collaborative building. Partners Michael Hofstetter and John Pettinelli are hopeful action will start by the end of the month.

As of Wednesday, Oct. 1, the interior, which will feature nine courts, was being prepped in anticipation of the top-coat playing surface being poured the very next day. Pettinelli said the curing process should take about two weeks, leaving open the possibility of welcoming pickleballers by sometime in late October.

The club will also included full locker room accommodations, with bathrooms and showers, for both women and men. One of the courts is being reserved for instruction/practice with a ball machine available. The other amenities include bar-style seating and televisions for patrons. As of now, Hofstetter said there are no plans to seek victualing or beverage licenses.

"We're going to be targeting players from Portsmouth, Barrington, Warren, Bristol, the East Side of Providence, East Providence. Everyone's welcome," said Hofstetter.

Pettinelli gave most of the credit for the vision of the business to his partner. Of his own participation in the game, he quipped, "I've dabbled, but not like these guys. I didn't know, I underestimated the pickleball community and how passionate they are. It's been great to see that passion come to fruition."

Hofstetter, of East Greenwich, is a former All-Stater in soccer at LaSalle Academy and later played for the University of Rhode Island who became an avid pickleball player and as of just recently he's also a certified Professional Pickleball Registry (PPR) instructor.

Pettinelli, as admitted, is not quite the devotee of the game as his colleague. The Providence resident is a commercial contractor, disabled veteran and Purple Heart recipient for his duties as an Infantry officer, reaching the rank of major, in the United States Marines Corps.

"I fell in love with pickleball, maybe two years back," Hofstetter said of his interest in the game. "So I fell in love with it, got certified to be teaching professional a couple months back, and now I'm just looking forward to the future."

That future included finding a suitable location for he and Pettinelli to open a proper indoor pickleball facility, of which there wasn't one in the East Bay. Though interest in the sport and the building of outdoor courts have exploded locally, there isn't a dedicated interior pickleball outlet in the vicinity, making the Market Street locale an ideal spot.

The nearest indoor pickleball courts are operated by the Newport Pickleball Club on West Main Road in Middletown.

"I saw the demand for the sport and saw, I guess, the path the sport was going on, and with my partner John we started looking around for a good location," Hofstetter said. "I want to say we looked for nine months at numerous spots all over Rhode Island. We really tried finding a spot that had an untouched market. There's really no spots in the northern part of Rhode Island. There's a huge demand here, whether it's Bristol or Barrington, the East Side of Providence or in general.

"John agreed that this would be a market that has not been touched yet. The Bristol league has 100 people playing outside, the Barrington tennis courts are absolutely swamped. People from Providence, and people from Barrington, and Portsmouth are driving upwards to 45 minutes to play pickleball indoors so this is a great spot."

Pettinelli added, "I think the community, overall, we've received nothing but positive feedback about bringing this to the East Bay. That's been extremely reinforcing in our beliefs and what we're doing here. We met with the (town council) in Warren and they were very excited to have a new business here. It's obviously just a small business, just the two of us, but this was all Michael's idea. So his passion for pickleball is what drove this process."

The club will initially offer memberships, clinics and leagues. Courts will also be rented to players on an hourly basis. Racquets and balls for newcomers will be available. Down the line, Hofstetter envisions younger, school-age players forming leagues of their own as he sees "the demographic changing a little bit right now" away from just adults and older competitors.

For more information on the club visit https://eastbaypickleballclub.com.