Seattle Outdoor Ping Pong Tables:
Like many cities on the West Coast, Seattle is trying to make their city friendlier by adding outdoor ping pong tables. A few years back Seattle decided that having outdoor table tennis tables in some of their city parks would be a good idea. The city went ahead and purchased quite a few of the Cornilleau 510 Pro stationary tables and at first the idea caught on. Parks became the place to be on warm summer days and the tables received plenty of use. The tables were strategically located throughout the city in places like Cal Anderson Park, Hing Hay Park (Chinatown), Westlake Park, Occidental Park, and Pier 62/63. Some of the tables were even custom designed like the one in Seattle Chinatown (see photo below).
On a recent trip up to the Emerald City, I went in search of these tables and wanted to play on each one. What I found out was that the Cornilleau 510 Pro tables took their fair share of abuse and ultimately several had to be replaced with even more industrial strength tables from Cornilleau. The Cornilleau Park Outdoor at $4500 is very expensive but considered the ‘tank’ of the industry with a near indestructible design. While the 510 Pro couldn’t take people sleeping on them year after year, the Cornilleau Park Outdoor tables have held up extremely well. The Cornilleau 510 Pro still exists in Seattle Chinatown and on Pier 62/63. Even the ones in Cal Anderson Park are going strong. The Cornilleau Park Outdoor models went into Occidental Park and Westlake Park. Each park was given 2 tables each and on my trip to Seattle they are still in very good shape. About the only thing that I noticed at Occidental Park was that cardboard had to be placed under the tables legs to get them to be level. Looks a bit odd given the price tag of the tables, but overall, the tables are beautiful. They are literally fire resistant and graffiti resistant so they are safe among the night time crowds. With a full ballast of sand they are close to 800 pounds so they are not going anywhere when left unattended.
Having lived in California for years and now currently residing in Portland, Oregon, I realize the need for outdoor family fun. Cities have an obligation to create a sense of community whenever possible. Ping pong is a game that is played by millions around the globe and the perfect outdoor recreation. All the tables mentioned above are weatherproof and can withstand any weather conditions. Cornilleau offers a 10 year warranty on almost all tables they sell for outdoor use. That is one of the main reasons we carry their brand and support their product line. Our goal is to see all cities across the United States develop parks and install stationary ping pong tables so that citizens can enjoy the cities they live in.
