The Smoothie King Center down in the Central Business District is normally the home of the New Orleans Pelicans, but on Tuesday the Pelicans’ main interest will focus on the newly refurbished outdoor basketball court at the Ponchatoula Community Center.
The Pelicans’ team logo at the center court stripe will be the center of attention at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the facility scheduled for 1 p.m. today, Jan. 20. Pelican team officials are expected to be in attendance along with State Sen. Bill Wheat of Ponchatoula and Mayor J. Wesley Daniels.
The Community Center was opened on East Fifth Street in 1979, with the court built in an outdoor space about 30 feet away on the building’s south side.
The vast majority of the action at the court has been informal pickup games instead of official league or official organizational games, which often dominate the court that is inside the Community Center building.
For nearly 50 years, according to Mayor Daniels, the most heavily used recreational area in Ponchatoula has been “probably that basketball court. At some point I think every kid in town passes through there.”
During the past almost half-century of heavy use, the court deteriorated. Cracks appeared in the concrete foundation, and players falling off the court risked ankle injuries. Balls that bounced out of play could become a safety concern because the ball often wound up in the busy Community Center parking lot or a nearby road frequently used by trucks traveling to and from the city maintenance yard. The court was also never the regulation size of 84-94 feet long by 50 feet wide.
Sen. Wheat, who played there himself as a youngster, remembered these factors when an opportunity arose.
Each year the Pelicans stage an event called “Hoopla,” in which members of the Louisiana state Senate and the state House of Representatives square off in a basketball game at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center on the LSU campus. The senators and legislators are invited to play in the game and/or purchase tickets for the game at $100 apiece. The money generated from ticket sales and other concessions and promotions associated with the game are then donated to the Hoopla Fund along with an additional sizable donation from the Pelicans.
A raffle is then held among the senators and legislators, and the winner of the raffle is designated to choose a basketball court within their district to be refurbished by the Pelicans.
Last year the winner was Wheat, who was in his first term as senator after serving a term in the House. Wheat said that when he was informed that he had won the raffle, he had a particular court in mind.
“I spoke to Bobby (Zabbia), who was the mayor at the time, and I knew this would be a big help,” Wheat said.
No final official estimate on how much money the Pelicans have donated for the court has been made public yet because the refurbishment project will still not be completed in time for the ribbon-cutting ceremony. However, considering all the aspects of the project, the final amount will likely be at least five figures. It is also a possibility that the City of Ponchatoula will be adding some of its own funds.
Perilloux Construction of Ponchatoula was hired, and starting during the late summer the old court was demolished and the old concrete removed. A new regulation-size court was installed, graded and reinforced and later painted. Stripes for the court were also regulation.
The Pelicans installed two goals with regulation height 10-foot hoops mounted on frames that arc away from the baselines instead of old-fashioned playground-style poles that are often within the playing surface and may pose an additional safety risk.
Fencing that will surround the court was still under construction last week. Mayor Daniels emphasized that the fencing is intended to serve as a barrier to prevent balls from bouncing out of play and posing danger to players. “This fencing is not to keep people out,” Daniels said.
Mayor Daniels said the plan is for seating to be built on one side of the court after the ribbon-cutting ceremony. No lighting is planned at this time, but could be in the future.
Meanwhile the Pelicans will return to regular-season action on Wednesday at the Smoothie King Center against the Detroit Pistons. Thanks to the Pelicans and the Louisiana legislature, pickup basketball will return to the Ponchatoula Community Center.