The Northbrook Park District keeps 28 outdoor tennis courts, and they are open "from April 1 until mid-October." That puts the outdoor season's end somewhere in the next week or two. Once it ends, every pickleball player, tennis regular and paddle beginner in the village is competing for indoor courts. This year there are far more indoor courts than last year. Almost none of the new ones belong to the Park District.
In 2023 the Park District wrote that demand for pickleball leagues was greater than the courts it had, so it used a random lottery to hand out spots. As of this month its pickleball page still reads "Lottery Closed Until Autumn 2026." In the same period, one private club on Techny Road opened with as many indoor pickleball courts as the rest of the village's indoor venues combined. A padel club on Shermer Road is now in sitework.
Four Courts and a Cap of 32
The public indoor option is the Techny Prairie Activity Center. Its open pickleball sessions use four courts and are limited to 32 people in the gym. Players must be 14 or older. When people are waiting, players rotate off after every game, and some time slots are reserved for players 60 and over. The Park District says the drop-in schedule changes every month, so check the live calendar before you drive over.
Renting a TPAC court costs $35 an hour for residents and $45 an hour for non-residents. TPAC members get $10 off. The Park District itself says rental times are limited. Outdoor courts rent for $17 an hour for residents, half the indoor rate, which shows what a heated gym floor is worth once the weather turns.
The fall leagues are already running. One example is a co-ed 60+ intermediate league at TPAC, scheduled from September 8 to December 15, 2026. The Park District has not posted a date or rules for the autumn lottery. Residents who want a league spot this winter should watch the pickleball page and the Autumn 2026 program guide.
That is the public system. It is well run, it costs little, and it is set up for a smaller game than the one Northbrook now plays.
What Techny Road Added in June
Life Time North Shore opened on June 26, 2026 at 1300 Techny Road. The building covers 114,000 square feet on a 17.7-acre site, according to Patch's August report. The club has 28 pickleball courts. Eighteen are indoors and ten are outdoors, and there is stadium-style seating for tournaments.
"Life Time North Shore is the region's new and spectacular hub for all things healthy living in addition to an unmatched pickleball experience for everyday play and large-scale pickleball tournaments," said Steven Pierce, Senior Club Leader at Life Time North Shore.
For the coming months, the 18 indoor courts are what count. The club says it will run regular intro-to-pickleball courses. It also plans programs for groups it says are overlooked elsewhere, such as peewee and junior players, active-aging members, and players whose DUPR rating falls between levels. Those groups overlap a lot with the people who fill TPAC's 60+ slots and beginner clinics.
The rest of the club is still being finished. Life Time said its coed hydrotherapy suite, with a steam room, sauna, cold plunge and whirlpool, would arrive "this fall." The outdoor Beach Club and pool are set for 2027. Both dates come from the opening announcement and are plans, not confirmed openings.
Where the Indoor Courts Are This Winter
These are the indoor and cold-weather venues in Northbrook with published court counts:
| Venue | Address | Indoor courts this winter | Main game |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life Time North Shore | 1300 Techny Road | 18 pickleball | Pickleball |
| Glenbrook Racquet Sports | 1801 Janke Drive | 7 pickleball, plus indoor tennis; 4 outdoor paddle courts | Tennis, pickleball, platform tennis |
| Northbrook Racquet Club | 2995 Dundee Road | 8 tennis | Tennis |
| Slate Pickleball Club | 569 S. Waukegan Road | 7 pickleball | Pickleball |
| Techny Prairie Activity Center | Park District | 4 pickleball for open play | Pickleball |
Counting only pickleball, there are 18 indoor courts at Life Time, 7 at Glenbrook, 7 at Slate, and 4 for open play at TPAC. Before June, those last three venues added up to 18 indoor pickleball courts. Life Time matched that number in a single building and doubled the village's total.
The Clubs That Were Already Here
Private clubs were part of Northbrook's winter play before Life Time arrived. Slate Pickleball Club, on Waukegan Road, has seven indoor courts and a full-service bar and restaurant. The bar is called The Dink Tank, and its food is prepared by The Pavilion. Slate's September 26, 2026 member update describes its current adult and junior programs and leagues. It also says the club is beta-testing upgraded lighting on Court 7. For Fall 2026, Slate is looking for new and returning organizers for its Bring Your Own League program, which suits groups that would rather book together than enter a lottery.
Glenbrook Racquet Sports on Janke Drive runs Glenbrook Racquet Club for tennis and Glenbrook Paddle Club for platform tennis, and it also has seven indoor pickleball courts. It calls itself "the largest indoor tennis facility in the North Shore."
Tennis players moving indoors have relied on the Park District's two partner clubs for years. The Park District's tennis program uses Northbrook Racquet Club on Dundee Road and Glenbrook Racquet Club on Janke Drive for its classes. Northbrook Racquet Club lists eight cushioned, air-conditioned indoor courts, with leagues, drills, junior development and senior programs. The Park District's current listings include an adult class there that runs from August 23 to December 20, 2026. Glenbrook is advertising registration for its 2026–27 junior tennis program.
So the private side was not new this year. What changed is how much bigger it got.
Paddle Is the One Game That Starts Outside in Winter
Platform tennis works the opposite way from everything above. It is played outdoors in cold weather, and its season begins about when the tennis courts close. Glenbrook's paddle club runs four outdoor platform-tennis courts, with ladies', men's and mixed doubles, cardio drills, mixers and events. The club has not posted dates for its 2026–27 season. The Park District's fall program list does give dates for its introductory paddle classes at Glenbrook:
- Women's intro to paddle: October 21 to December 16, 2026
- Men's intro to paddle: October 24 to December 12, 2026
Both sessions begin within days of the outdoor tennis season ending. A resident who has played tennis all summer can sign up for paddle without a gap between seasons.
One public tennis project is also wrapping up this fall. At West Park, 1730 Pfingsten Road, the Park District is replacing three tennis courts. Its August 28 update projected substantial completion in October, with park fixtures to follow in November. If that schedule holds, the courts will be done just as the outdoor season closes, ready for April.
Shermer Road's Padel Club, Still in Sitework
The next addition is a game Northbrook has not had a dedicated place for yet. Kin Sports LLC applied to build Proximo Padel at 2985 Shermer Road and the adjoining Old Willow Road parcels. The Village's project tracker lists seven padel courts, six pickleball courts, a shop, a café and lounge areas.
The design changed during review. After the Village Board's preliminary review, the formal plan moved access to Shermer, dropped the outdoor padel courts, and cut parking from 72 spaces to 68. The Plan Commission voted 8–0 to recommend approval. Its conditions included EV charging rough-in, a solar photovoltaic assessment and dark-sky-certified exterior lighting. At the hearing, one resident raised concerns about a cottonwood tree, parking and traffic. The applicant said the club would host inter-club leagues and estimated 12 to 16 months of construction.
As of the Village's September 8, 2026 tracker update, a sitework permit had been issued and work was ongoing. Proximo's own website lists Northbrook as "Coming soon" and gives no opening date. The nearest place to try padel this winter is Club Pickle & Padel in Highland Park, at 2205 Skokie Valley Road. The Park District of Highland Park opened it in September 2025 with ten pickleball courts and four padel courts.
Once Proximo opens, its six pickleball courts and seven padel courts will be added to the 32 indoor pickleball courts already at Northbrook's private clubs. The Park District will still have four for open play. This winter, the Park District keeps running fall leagues at TPAC and the autumn lottery page stays closed.
Northbrook's leisure amenities affect how buyers see the village, and the court list changed this year. If you're weighing a move within Northbrook or nearby, or want to know how amenities like these show up in buyer interest, The AVE Group can walk you through it block by block. Explore our Northbrook neighborhood page, catch up on the village's summer downtown story, or schedule a free consultation with our senior team.
