Century-old CT brass factory the target site for home to popular new sport
· Yahoo Sports
A Southington couple is proposing to turn part of a massive old factory in Bristol into a large indoor complex of padel courts, bringing the city what Sports & Fitness Industry Association calls the fastest-growing sport in the country.
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If the city approves, Padel Connect CT would renovate a little more than 25,000 square feet of space in the former Bristol Brass and Clock Co. industrial complex.
It would be the first padel center in the city; currently most padel courts in Connecticut are along the shoreline, although Newington and Middletown each have facilities, too.
Yaemish and Jagdeep Rughoo are proposing the project through their Padel Connect CT LLC.
The city is considering their zoning application, and if that’s approved the Building Department would still need to review the specifics of how they’d remodel space in the more than century-old factory on Broad Street.
Mayor Ellen Zoppo-Sassu said Padel Connect CT’s concept is appealing.
“We are fully suppotive and interested in seeing recreational reuses of industrial spaces such as this,” Zoppo-Sassu said Tuesday.
“Padel Connect proposes an approximately 25,780-square-foot facility with eight padel courts — four doubles courts, three children’s courts and one singles court — along with social and gathering spaces,” the company said in its zoning application.
In recent years, pickleball has grown exponentially across the country. Connecticut communities were inundated by investors’ plans to put up both indoor and outdoor facilities.
But the Sports Business Journal reported last month that padel has eclipsed pickleball nationally in 2026.
“Padel participation was up 14.5%, making it the fastest-growing activity in this report. Pickleball’s growth, however, has cooled. After five straight years as SFIA’s fastest-growing sport, pickleball is up just 1.3% this half,” the publication reported.
“Padel is the fastest-growing sport in the world with Europe and South America already seeing a huge number of players, clubs and investors enter the market in the last five years,” Padel Connect CT said in its zoning application.
The U.S. Padel Association projects 30,000 courts across the United States by 2030, with 10 million players.
“Padel Connect CT is a proposed indoor padel facility designed to bring a growing, accessible racket sport to Bristol and the surrounding central Connecticut communities,” the company said. “The business will combine court rentals, beginner programming, junior development, leagues, coaching, corporate events, and social/community space into a year-round recreational destination.”
Padel’s popularity is growing, but as of this year it is still only a fraction as big as pickleball. The Sports & Fitness Industry Association’s mid-year report showed a little more than 1 million padel players nationally, compared to 24.3 million for pickleball and 27.3 million for traditional tennis.
Padel is a racket sport that mixes squash, tennis and badminton. Padel Connect CT describes it as approachable and easier for beginners than many traditional racket sports.
“The proposed facility will provide a welcoming indoor environment for adults, children, families, schools, local employers, and community groups. The business will focus on participation, health, inclusion, and repeat community engagement rather than operating only as a private athletic club,” it said.