Ballard "Old Timers" league gets good news about pickup basketball space

The Ballard "Old Timers" League’ can stay at their home as soon as renovations are completed, the group learned Wednesday.

The pickup basketball group formed in the 1970s in a Capitol Hill alley, and played basketball at Ballard’s Trinity United Methodist Church every Wednesday since the early 1980s.

Last month, the group received a notice saying they could no longer play at the gym after Wednesday, Dec. 26.

"In the middle of the week you have somewhere to go and if there are troubles in your life, this is the place where for a couple of hours, they go away," said 70-year-old Pat McCullough.

The church was sold to Green Lake Presbyterian Church, and McCullough said he met with the pastor on Jan. 2.

"The new church said they're more than happy to have us," McCullough said. "They're a very welcoming church - very nice people."

Green Lake Presbyterian also told the group they plan to waive the $40 weekly fee that the group was charged previously.

The only difficulty: It may be fall before the gym can be used again. The new owners are planning an earthquake retrofit and bathroom upgrades, and the gym space is needed during those efforts, McCullough said. There’s also talk that the gym floor from 1929 may be refinished.

The meeting also cleared up what happened with the notice to leave. McCullough was told Green Lake Presbyterian Church didn’t know about the Wednesday basketball group, which plays for two hours.

They were told the church that sold the space forgot to pass along information about them, and they sent the notice about Dec. 26 after the building was sold.

That’s understandable, McCullough said: The group had been there through multiple pastors and played there during evening hours. It was easy to see how they could be accidentally overlooked with all the responsibilities of the property sale.

"They never had an intent to kick us out," McCullough said of Green Lake Presbyterian, noting the group’s appreciation of being able to play for free when the gym is open again.

The group is still trying to confirm a gym to play in until their old church is done with the work. Their tips email is wednitehoopsters@gmail.com.

Faced with the end of a tradition, an Old Timers regular, Erik Hutchison, posted a masterfully edited online video explaining the league's legacy and tradition, while asking for help finding a new place to play.

His video is embedded below.