A Brief History of Bocce at PVE
Bocce Ball
A poem by Ian Lanouette:
A bocce ball rolls
The crowd waits with
bated breath
The pallino laughs
For many years, bocce has been a favorite PVE activity. In 2002, a group of residents decided to build a bocce court. Led by John Kroyer, the residents measured and staked out a bocce court, managed the grading and development work and did much of the shovel work themselves. The original bocce court was surfaced with crushed seashells over a sand and gravel base. The resident council provided $8,500 for construction of the court.
In 2009, the Resident Council budgeted for an upgrade that made the bocce court maintenance free. The work was funded by PVE management. The existing base was overlaid with a porous concrete surface covered by AstroTurf. It was dedicated to John Kroyer. That bocce court is still in use today. Several years later, the area surrounding the court received a major facelift with concrete sidewalks, steps, bench seating and beautiful landscaping.
Through the first ten years, the number of residents playing bocce fluctuated between 85 and 100 each year. Then, in 2014, 145 residents signed up to play bocce and scheduling changes were required to accommodate the increased activity. The bocce committee submitted a project request for a second court to relieve pressure on the Kroyer Court. The request was scheduled for an undated future year.
In 2015, the number of bocce players jumped again, to 190. The bocce committee made changes to the season so everyone could play. In 2016, with 23 teams and 185 players, management and the resident council approved, funded and supervised construction of a second bocce court, which was completed in December following the 2016 season. The new court, conveniently located near the DeLong Pavilion, is identical in size and construction as the Kroyer court.
The new court was dedicated on March 29, 2017, and has been fully integrated into the PVE bocce program. In 2017, the call for bocce players yielded 195 players for 23 teams, which played at least once each week on average. The season opened on April 14 and the last game will be played late in September. Life is good for PVE bocce.
