Stirling meeting rising demand for basketball courts

Basketball has the second-highest participation of any team sport in Australia and continues to grow, with the NBL’s popularity surging and more Australians playing in the NBA.

There is unmet demand for public basketball courts across Perth, but local governments often encounter challenges given the cost of indoor courts and amenity impacts of outdoor courts in increasingly dense urban environments.

The City is taking a strategic approach to meeting the demand by identifying public open spaces that are highly accessible and allow noise impacts to be effectively managed.

The latest example has recently opened to the public at Charles Riley Memorial Reserve in North Beach, where the City has received multiple requests for a basketball facility.

The brand-new 3x3 court at Charles Riley Memorial Reserve features a noise-reducing backboard and a poppy surface motif in honour of the North Beach RSL Sub-Branch.

It is the fourth public outdoor basketball facility delivered since 2024 in the City of Stirling, the home of Perth Wildcats star Dylan Windler.

US-born Windler played more than 100 games in the NBA before making the move to Perth.

“It’s great to see more Australians getting into basketball, but like with any sport, you need to give people places to play if you want it to keep growing,” Windler said.

“Free public courts like this one are great additions to the community and so valuable for the kids who will spend hours and hours down here having fun and developing their skills.”

A 3x3 court was completed at Breckler Park in Dianella last year, with the same noise-reducing backboard and durable alternative net technology.

The Breckler Park court features a striking mural by David Ledger called Twilight and was delivered through the WA Government’s PlayOn WA initiative, which aims to provide 2,030 new community sport and recreation infrastructure assets across WA by 2030.

In late 2024, the City responded to community demand by including a 3x3 basketball court at Macaulay Park in Inglewood as part of broader improvements to the park.

Earlier in 2024, the City converted two futsal courts into three outdoor basketball courts at Stirling Leisure – Mirrabooka, with an urban art style and lighting that stays on until 10.00pm every night.

The next project in the pipeline is a full-court basketball court set for Lake Gwelup Regional Open Space, featuring noise-reducing backboards, a shelter and more.

It has been made possible by a $120,000 state election commitment by Scarborough MLA Stuart Aubrey, with the City supplementing that funding to turn the initial 3x3 commitment into a full-size facility.

The Lake Gwelup basketball court is another project being delivered by the City as part of the WA Government’s PlayOn WA initiative.

“We hear from our community all the time about having access to quality sporting infrastructure, like the basketball court that's coming to Lake Gwelup,” Mr Aubrey said.

“It's great to be able to partner with the City to deliver these projects.”