Stripe Memphis Basketball Courts
Better Basketball Courts, Stronger Communities: Striping lines, covering graffitti and making other minor basketball court improvements in City of Memphis basketball courts.
Leader
Daniel Peterson
Location
Poplar @ Mannassas Memphis , TN 38104
About the project
http://www.projectbackboard.org/
http://projectbackboard.tumblr.com/
Our goal is to (1) stripe the courts, (2) paint goal posts, (3) cover graffiti and (4) where appropriate, replace backboards and cover old corporate logos with graphic backboards, in 15 City of Memphis basketball courts by September 2015.
Currently, of the 51 outdoor courts in City of Memphis parks, only 13 are striped. Only 45 backboards are metal. 3 backboards are wood and the remaining 54 are composite, many of which are cracking in the corners and do not have bank-shot squares.
Without lines, it is not possible to play an "official" basketball game outdoors in most city parks. People who wish to work on their fundamentals, like free throw shooting, must either work around the crowds at community center gyms or guess where the foul line or three point line should be.
Making minor improvements to basketball courts in Memphis will help improve basketball fundamentals across the city and increase usage of city park facilities which will help improve park safety and add to a general sense of community in neighborhoods.
MEMPHIS BASKETBALL COURT DATA
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Z0RO7sJSwVRY7qy9jC9XXOO2xYJqlwC0Sm_3BPwZ77I/edit#gid=607713799
MEMPHIS BASKETBALL COURT PHOTOS
https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/113818920022665129045/albums
The Steps
(1) Purchase reusable court stencil, (2) purchase paint (3) paint courts and where appropriate (4) purchase and install steel backboards and (5) collaborate with artists to design purchase and install backboard wraps.
Why we‘re doing it
In addition to creating outdoor courts that can be used for pick-up or for an official game and a place for people to develop their basketball fundamentals, we believe that more attractive park amenities, like basketball courts, help build stronger communities by increasing social interaction between different groups.
Basketball is the most popular recreational sport in the United States and if Memphis wants to truly live up to the "Hoop City" nickname, outdoor basketball facilities in the city need basic improvements like lines.