Two large pickleball-and-pool complexes are opening on Lakewood Ranch's east side about ten weeks apart. Life Time opened its athletic country club on Lakewood Ranch Boulevard on October 12. Manatee County's Athletics & Aquatics Center at Premier Sports Campus North, next to the Lakewood Ranch Library, is aiming to open at the end of December. On paper they offer much the same things, including covered courts, open play, a lap pool and a place to cool off afterward. They differ in who can get a court, when and at what cost. For anyone setting up a regular game this winter, those rules count for more than the amenity list.
What Opened on Lakewood Ranch Boulevard in October
Your Observer reported that Life Time opened its doors at 4 a.m. on October 12. The complex covers more than 180,000 square feet, and nearly 3,000 members had signed up before opening day. Besides pickleball, it has a resort-style beach club, cardio and strength floors, several fitness studios, a full-service spa and salon, a cafe and bar, coworking space, a Kids Academy and a chiropractic clinic.
The pickleball setup is a big part of the club. Three indoor courts are on the fitness floor. Outside are 11 more courts, five of them covered, with seating between them for players waiting on the next game. General manager Steve Datte told the paper that people who have never been to a Life Time "get excited about what they're going to do with their days now."
The club's own Lakewood Ranch page lists the address as 5000 Lakewood Ranch Blvd N and says adult memberships start at $339 a month. Memberships are month-to-month with no annual contract, and canceling takes 30 days' notice. Single-visit access is less clear. Your Observer reported at opening that Life Time does not offer day passes, but guests who spend $150 or more on LifeSpa or salon services can use the rest of the club for the day at no extra charge, and spa and salon bookings are open to non-members. The club's own page, however, describes day passes that give full member access for one day. If you want to try it before joining, ask the front desk which policy currently applies.
At Life Time, Court Access Depends on Membership Tier
A regular weekly game depends on how courts are booked, and Life Time ties that to its membership levels. The club's pickleball page says court reservations are made in the app and require a Signature Membership, and court time is free at that level.
Open play runs on a different track. It is listed as available to all members, at set times sorted by skill level. Some sessions are reserved for ARORA, Life Time's membership program for seniors. The same page describes open play as scheduled weekly sessions for players with a reservation. If you plan to drop in, check the app for that week's schedule first.
So a standard membership gets you into the scheduled sessions, and the Signature tier lets you book a court for a fixed foursome.
What the County Is Finishing Next to the Library
Manatee County has taken a different approach a few minutes up the road. Construction began in February 2025 on the $44 million, 44,000-square-foot Athletics & Aquatics Center at Premier Sports Campus North. In Your Observer's September 23 walkthrough, the buildings were up, the pools were full, the pickleball courts were painted and the walking trail was poured. The remaining work was furniture, shade sails and turf for the pickleball waiting area.
The center has 24 courts, and 14 of them are covered. A shaded hitting wall is being added. Molly White, Manatee County's director of Sports and Leisure, told the paper that some courts will always be held for open play. The number will change with the time of day, and the rest will be booked through CourtReserve. The county plans to use booking data to see which hours fill up and keep drop-in courts open during them.
Residents can pay $35 a month or a $5 drop-in rate for two straight hours of play. A walking path behind the courts loops around a pond. The county has also left room behind the courts for tennis courts if funding comes through.
Here is how the two compare, using what each has published or reported so far:
| Life Time Lakewood Ranch | Premier Sports Campus North | |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Opened Oct. 12, 2026 | Targeting late December 2026 |
| Pickleball courts | 3 indoor, 11 outdoor | 24 outdoor |
| Covered courts | 5 of the outdoor courts | 14 |
| Reserving a court | App, Signature Membership required | CourtReserve |
| Open play | Scheduled sessions for members | Some courts always held for drop-in |
| Cost to play | Memberships from $339/month | $35/month or $5 per two-hour drop-in |
| Single-visit access | Day passes on club site; $150 spa/salon spend includes club day | $5 drop-in |
The Pools Run on Separate Schedules
The courts are getting the attention this fall, but both sites also built major pools, and those open on different timelines.
At Life Time, the beach club covers about 50,000 square feet. It includes a leisure pool with two slides and a mushroom fountain, a five-lane lap pool, cabanas and poolside dining. The club employs more than 200 people now, and Your Observer reported that staff will grow to nearly 300 next summer "when the pool is in full swing."
At Premier, the pool exists because swimmers asked for it. Swim team members, coaches and parents filled the Manatee County Commission chambers in 2021 to ask for a 50-meter competition pool in place of the original 25-meter plan. The finished center has a heated 50-meter pool and a therapy pool, both with lifts for swimmers who need help getting in and out. Teams pay to use the pool. Members of the public swim free, because Manatee County does not charge residents at its pools. The county's aquatic safety page says entry to all public pools is free during public swim hours.
The Lakewood Ranch Swim Association Lightning and the Sarasota Tsunami Swim Team already share lanes at the John Marble Aquatics Center, and they will share at Premier as well. The Parrish Bull Sharks will keep training at the Lincoln Aquatic Center in Palmetto. All three teams are planning a swim meet for the grand opening. The building also has a community room with floor-to-ceiling windows over the pool deck, which the county will rent for parties.
When the County Center Will Actually Open
An exact opening date has not been set. The Bradenton Herald reported on October 5 that White was aiming for the end of December. The Lakewood Ranch Beacon reported on October 12 that no ribbon-cutting date had been announced. The Beacon published these proposed hours and noted that hours, fees and programming will be confirmed when the county officially announces the opening:
- Monday through Thursday, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.
- Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- Saturday and Sunday, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The county's facility listing still says "coming soon." White has said she pictures a "fun, community celebration" for the opening, with open play on the courts and local swimmers in the competition pool.
The Courts That Are Already Open
Until the county center opens, the usual outdoor courts are still available. Manatee County's Lakewood Ranch Park, at 5350 Lakewood Ranch Blvd., has six pickleball courts and a practice wall and is open sunrise to sunset. The community's parks and trails page lists one court at Country Club/Edgewater Park, 8256 Legacy Blvd., and courts at Summerfield Community Park, 6402 Lakewood Ranch Blvd.
Sarasota County's courts are first-come, first-served all year. Pompano Trailhead, at 601 S. Pompano Ave., has 12 lighted courts and is open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
For indoor play without a full club membership, the Pickleball Club at Lakewood Ranch reopened under new ownership with a soft opening on June 1, 2025. The club's site lists eight climate-controlled indoor courts and handles memberships and scheduling through CourtReserve. The Lakewood Ranch Pickleball Club is a separate, membership-based players' group. It does not own or run any courts, and its members arrange court time on their own.
By New Year's, the stretch from 5000 Lakewood Ranch Blvd N to the courts beside the Lakewood Ranch Library should have nearly 40 more courts than it had at the start of October. Twenty-two of them will be covered or indoors.
Whether your ideal week includes a covered court at 7 a.m. or a lap pool you can walk to, we are glad to talk through how these new facilities fit with the parts of Lakewood Ranch you are considering. Leisa Erickson Group knows this corridor well. Let's Connect.
