The City will not be issuing additional permits for courts at this time. A review of court allocation is planned for 2023 where staff will be seeking public input. Additional details will be released as they are available.
Full basketball courts are available at Central Park and Vic West Park. Multi-use courts are available at:
A variety of outdoor fitness equipment is available in the following five parks:
Beacon Hill Park
Cecelia Ravine Park
Central Park
Oaklands Park
Topaz Park
Vic West Park
Topaz Park
Topaz Park
Cecelia Ravine Park
Booking a Field
We strive to allocate permits for regulation-sized sports fields fairly. This helps maximize public use while allowing teams and leagues a consistent location to carry out scheduled play.
To ensure fair use of sports fields for organized play, any team or league that wishes to use a field must get a Park Use Permit. Unorganized games or pick-up games do not require a permit.
Any team or league wishing to use a field requires a Park Use Permit. Permits are not required for unorganized or pick-up games.
Complete and submit an application for a Park Use Permit:
Park staff retain the right to cancel any permit subject to field/weather condition.
Cancellation of events for environmental conditions such as rain-outs shall not be charged providing the event is cancelled prior to the beginning of play by the Parks Division.
Refunds for tournaments/beer gardens will only be issued if received no later than seven days before the requested time. Refunds will be considered if City staff can find an alternate user for the tournament/beer garden time.
The City cannot guarantee that all requests for playing time will be fulfilled
Permits will be issued by the Permit Clerk, Recreation Division under the direction of the Manager, Recreation Division.
Where allocation of a playing field has no priority, permits will be issued according to the date that the written requests were received in the Recreation office
Written requests for ball diamonds will be received during the month of January
Written requests for rugby/soccer fields will be received from June 1-30
Each organization/team that has historic priority for a tournament has first refusal for the equivalent weekend at the same sports field the following year – first refusal in this instance is only if the appropriate written request is submitted
A memo will be mailed to previous tournament and scheduled users reminding them of their need to reapply for the new season – failure to reply by the date requested will result in loss of use, and it will then go to the next name on a waiting list
All permits must be signed, and one copy must be returned to the Recreation Division at 2275 Quadra Street to deem the permit valid
A league schedule must be delivered to the Permit Clerk, Recreation Division before the start of regular season play
All outstanding invoices must be paid in full before new permits being allocated
Beer garden request will be issued to teams in good standing who have applied as outlined above and have historic priority – all requests are subject to the Beer Garden Policy as approved by Council, and any requests for exemptions to the policy will be directed to Committee of the Whole for a decision
In addition to permit requirements, any league requesting use of a park to host cup games or international matches must make the following arrangements:
Make a written submission to the Permit Clerk, Recreation Division to host the tournament naming the location, date, and time of the event
If the event falls on a weekend that is normally allocated to another league, contact that league to acquire permission in writing to hold the event on the weekend they normally use
Submit a copy of the written permission from the league that is usually allocated the field(s)
Upon receipt of the required documents, the request to host the event will be reviewed. If the request is approved, a permit will be issued from the Recreation Division. Please note that hosting a cup game or international match does not set a precedent for your league to use of City of Victoria Parks annually.
Insurance
Insurance for booking a field or court must be obtained by the Applicant. The Applicant must provide proof of coverage at least two weeks prior to the booked timeslot. Failure to obtain and provide proof of coverage by this time will result in cancellation of the booking. Coverage may be obtained through a provider of the Applicant's choice or Instant Risk. Please contact Instant Risk directly for any question or concerns regarding that platform or coverage.
If arranging coverage through your own own provider, the Certificate of Insurance must evidence Commercial General Liability coverage with a minimum of $5 million limits, and include The City of Victoria as an Additional Insured, with a cross liability clause.
Indemnification
In booking the facility, the Applicant agrees to indemnify the City against any and all claims, actions or demands that may be brought, made or arise in respect of anything done or omitted to be done by the Applicant pursuant to facility rental or resulting from the use of the Facility, save and except to the extent that such claims, actions or demands arise from or relate to the negligence, wrongful act or omission of the City, or any of its officers or employees.
Pickleball Strategy for Victoria, Saanich, Esquimalt and Oak Bay
This strategy involves collaboration among the municipalities to work together on solutions.
Pickleball has grown rapidly, creating challenges for municipalities to meet the demand for courts. Limited space leads to sharing issues with other sports, causing concerns about noise near outdoor courts. The strategy proposes solutions to common challenges, providing consistency and structure for future development. Municipal staff can use this strategy as a reference to make decisions that align with a coordinated effort in the region.
Maintenance and Closures
City staff who work on the fields strive to provide a safe and playable surface. The Parks follows a very intensive maintenance and improvement program for all sports fields. We have increased our field maintenance equipment to provide better care and maintenance to our playing surfaces. For example, we have made nail drags for the ball diamonds, purchased better line marking machines and upgraded our tractors.
For field, park and washroom maintenance, please email parks@victoria.ca or call 250.361.0600 weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. You may also leave a message after regular hours and we will contact you on the next business day.
Field Closures
Poor weather conditions or unsafe field conditions are the primary reasons for sport field closures. To meet the demand for high quality fields and ensure a safe playing field, both weather and field conditions are monitored daily. Fields are inspected every Thursday by Parks staff.
When a field is closed, it is the responsibility of sport team coaches to ensure that fields are not played on. Any teams caught playing on the field may forfeit the right to play on that field for the remainder of the season.
User Discretion
With user discretion, we have empowered users to make common sense decisions about whether to cancel an event on their field. We ask that, if there is frost or standing water on any area of the field, or it is too wet to play, to postpone and reschedule the event. Please notify the Parks Permit Clerk the next day to advise if you have postponed an event.
