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HomeMy WebLinkAboutNewspaper articles about Playfieldsi'""""'" U ~~ a^,,,~~ 4. Playing field fees may go (way) up Susie Dymoke, president of the Saratoga Little League, is urging parents to attend a meeting Monday, Apri113, at 7:30 p.m. at Saratoga City Hall. On the agenda is a proposal by the Parks and Recreation Dept. to raise fees to $20 per head. The current fee for the 1,200 AYSO and 480 Little League players is a flat fee of $1,500 per season. Little League president Dymoke, charged that the city is trying to resolve its bud- getproblems byovercharging under-l2-year-olds. • a .. ~....<~ ;. ~" k tees hike delayed ~ Sc11'at091: Officials, youth sports leaders will negotiate costs. BY CONTTIE SKIPITARES Mercury News staff reporter Saratoga officials have decided not to impose a stiff increase in fees Charged to youth Sports leagues that use city parks - at least through the of this year. t officials do want to meet with e representatives within the next month to talk about an increase for next year and after. City officials had proposed that the youth soccer and baseball leagues that contract with the city to use Congress Springs Park pay near- ly seven times what they currently pay. The $3,000 fee - $1,500 paid by each sport - goes toward paying for grooming and maintenance for the exclusive right to use those fields several days a week C ~- ~ dty Wants the Sports leagues to Start paying about $20,000 a year. The fees would be assessed on a per- child basis. Tn the first year, the city Proposes charging $12 per child, with the figure gradually going. City officials say they need the money to continue maintaiiang the park and to put funds aside for future park development for more fields at the schools. Also, the city's budget has been ailing since the utility tag was turned down at the polls last year, and city officials are looking ev erywhere for new funding. Soccer officials say the number of kids who sign up for soccer alone has doubled over the last several Years and this Year they had to hirn are expected to sign up.this year for soccer, which is played in the fall. Some 480 children are playing Little League baseball this spring. Sports league officials, saying they'd like to strike a compromise, have told the city they're to increase their fee to $S,000~per~year to play on the fields. They also told the council at a meeting 'lliesday night that they could crome up with a gardening service that could provide park maintenance. "We know it doesn't cost the city that much to maintain the park, so we don't think it's fair to have to pay that much more," says Larry one, a regional commissioner with the AY SO soccer league. "Most people in Saratoga can pay the extra $12, but it's the principle. It seems like they're penalizing us." Volunteer help FSne says the leagues also form volunteer groups among parents to do additional field maintenance, which helps out the city. Officials say the $3,000 the two leagues pay falls short of mainte- nance and operating costs for the 9.~ acre Congress Springs Park They say it takes $63,000 a year. The sports groups say that if the city wants them to pay more for use of the fields, then it's only fair to charge other groups that regularly use the fields, such as girls softball leagues and even a dog-walldng group that shows up at the park most days, F"me says City Manager Larry Perlin said the city decided to extend the current fees through the end of the year to give the sports groups and the city time to negotiate an agreement. «• i Y ~ C C O O N ~ O O C ~n`~~a~3~Xm~ ~ ~ °' ~ O y a~i ~.~L ~ ~~~`p O N«. z3 O!~ ~.~-cv,mc~ZQ~w oZ .~ 3 ~~c~3 ~u~ca~~~ o~ /~ c) =cLf ocXC~'-'of w V L UJ~•~.5~ a° c~iti 3a ~~I .w . 1: ~ ,.. .~_4~ t~., -_~,. d ~~ ~d ~ /'w avi ~~ ~, v 'b~V~ ~_ ~, ~ 3 > ~ ~ .~c '~ ~ ego ~~, :~~~i b~~~~~~a~~ rI ii ~ U ~ ~ , 4 i~.f . ~ U C/~1 ',~ ,~ ~, . W ~~ ~ _ s~ ~ 46 ~ ~ ~° - r fA V m ~O ~ a~ ~ ~ H~ ~ H °. 4z o ao V ~ Vol. 45, No.16 Wednesday, April 22,.1998 Fee Increases ~ B E LT TIGHTENIN G PLAYS ITSELF OUT Continued from page l ' RTS ON YOUTH SPO first year be implemented and that a new project manager-in the process of being T P LAYI1 V G F I E L I] S hired-negotiate an agreement for future years. The issue was scheduled.to come before the council Apri121. Fine pointed out that the increase rep- AYSO,Little League protest resents a jump from the $1,500 fee to more a proposed increase in fees than $14,000 for AYSO. In addition, Fine said AYSO already paid the city for this year's season with a check for $1,500 that Per-child formula suggested was cashed last November. City staffers admitted the check was cashed but said it doesn't preclude the city's requiring more under a new contract. By SARAH LOMBARDO Saratoga recreationdirectorJoanPisani kings are heating up between the was instructed by the City Council last year to look into renegotiating the contracts Saratoga Little League, the Amer- and i i with Little League, which expired in on zat icanYouthSoccerOrgan the city-and it's not on the playing fields. March, and AYSO, which will expire in May, to help cover the costs of maintaining But it is about the playing fields. The city the playing fields. Pisani and Saratoga Lit- wants tochange how the youth sports orga- tle League president Susie Dymoke had nizations pay for their use of the fields at reached a verbal agreement in recent Congress Springs Park. weeks for the increase, on the condition Currently, the groups pay the city a $1,500 that certain improvements be made to • flat fee for exclusive use of the fields for For the Little Leaguers, that ir seasons th Congress Springs Park. AYSO, however, didn't like the agreement, claiming it was . . e came out to about $3 per child; for AYSO, too high for playing fields that they say are .not kept up properly by the city anyway. it was about $1 per child. But now the city wants to char a the rou s on a er-child g g P P And that, apparently, caused Little League officials to rethink their agreement basis and to increase the amount to $12 per and bring it back before city staffers. child this year and $15 per child next year. Fine said hewants to goback to aflat- It's a movecityofficials say is necessary fee rate. But city staffers said that would to maintain the fields at Congress Springs- mean that Little League, which has fewer Park-and future fields-in light of the players than AYSO, would end up paying city's tightened belt in the wake of the 1996 a higher per-player rate. e loss of the utility-users tax. But officials for both leagues say it's too d Dymoke said she would not be oppos to an increase, but "we certainly don't " much and that the city is trying to raise want to pay more than Little League: And both Dymoke and Fine agree that money through the city's children. "You're trying to raise money on .the the fields are not maintained as well as they would like now, and they questioned backs of these children, Larry Fine, region- I alcommissioner for Saratoga AYSO, told I what kind of maintenance will be provid- ed for the increase in fees. According to the Parks and Recreation Commission commission estimates, it costs the city April 13. "Let's all be reasonable and about $10,000 pet acre to keep up the remember that this is for the kids." playing fields. With eight acres at Con- - The commission voted to recommend to gress Springs, that's $80,000 a year. the City Council that an agreement with the sports groups for $12 per child for the Please turn to page 10 Zz iyy~' • llnn~ 'I,U+da~.~G~nuQZ°I~Igk~ .. ~~a~~ City gives youth sports teams a reprieve for the time being Maintenance an issue By S,ax~x LoMBaxDO • Saratoga youth sports leagues won't have to pay higher fees to use Congress Springs Park this year. But next year could be a different story. The Saratoga City Council, going against a recommendation by the Parks and Recre- ationCommission, agreed Apri121 to keep fees for the Saratoga Little League and the American Youth Soccer Organization at the same $1,500 flat rate for the 1998 sea- sons, and toask asoon-to-be-hired consul- tant tobegin negotiations with the leagues for following years. The Parks and Recre- ation Commission had recommended that fees be increased to $12 per child for this year and that the new consultant begin talks with the leagues for future years. Original proposals called for fees to be raised to $15 for next yeaz's seasons, with an ultimate increase to $20 per player in future years. Little League officials had agreed to such an arrangement earlier this yeaz, on the condition that improvements be made to the park and that AYSO also agree to the deal. AYSO didn't. Larry Fine, a regional commissioner for AYSO, said the increase-from the cur- rent $1,500 per season the league pays to an estimated $14,400 for the first year- wastoo high. Fine questioned how much the city actually spent on the parks and said it was unfair to target the teams when they aren't the only ones who use the park. But city officials pointed out that the fee-increase picture was larger than the maintenance of the almost 10-acre park. City Manager Larry Perlin said money from the fee increases not only will go to Congress Springs upkeep, but will also help maintain future fields slated to be built at several local school sites. If the city can't afford to maintain the new sites, they will not get built, Perlin said, stressing that the city must raise fees for that purpose. Parents seemed to question that rea- soning,complaining the city doesn't main- tain Congress Spring Park to their league's safety standards as it is. "You don't really think that there's any- onehere who wants the conditions you're talking about, do you?" Councilmember Paul Jacobs asked the crowd. "The reason the fields aze in such bad condition is that we don't have the money to maintain them. You come to us and say, `Hey, we don't have the money for this.' And we have to say, `Hey, we don't have the money, either."' Councilmember Gillian Moran said the 1997 loss of the utility-users tax led to reduced maintenance throughout the city. Most of the almost 30 parents who showed up at last Tuesday's meeting some with soccer-uniformed children in tow- saidthey understand that increases are nec- essarybut added that they were not includ- ed in talks and that the sudden announce- ment ofthe increases caught them off guazd. Fine said that although he was aware increases were being talked about, the deal even took him by surprise. "There were nonegotiations-none," he said. "I was basically called and told the fees would be $12, then $15, then $20." Officials said discussions with both leagues would begin in the next month. • a~ ~ , r -o~ ~^"f Nc~~ c°~°yy~~ycopQyra'n~; ~~~~y ~~ o G ''3 C/~ ° G-~° ~~n°.,c~GA„roc"'~ocGo~~'a~~~.~cACd e.~o'Qy'~`'~ e'r ~,, ~ ~'o~c~ °Qcdo~o~~~•i°.ecdv~~~ ~~o wy~cd~o oe~3 r!~ Z n ? rn ..« A "p G cr. ~, ~ G ,...' p,,0 ~ ~ d ~ ^ A '~ t O ~, c9 ~ L~ ~ ~. 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H Vf ~2t3.Cy11 SRI~I ~+ S~i~.(y11 SI2Iyj .~+ S11~y11 SI2I~1 ~aCare =`~~~~ Suite A r,~.c~~U~ue~ iao~..aP,„ na-F sir a.i $~oo ~FF ~ FALL PROGRAMS i i~~ r~ ~ . it...t,. ~ ~ ~y 1 P~~ ur,. na» Ong akin •.xp. a-+s.ss ~ Athletic fields are. one step closer to becoming a reality Talks proceed with `wish list' By SARAH LOMBARDO Saratoga Parks and Recreationcommis- sioners,local athletic league officials, school representatives and city staffers met for a second time July 28 to discuss thefuture- and future costs~f local playing fields. The meeting was devoid of the fireworks that accompanied the previous one in June, but with two more meetings to go and negotiations over the prices leagues will pay to use the fields yet to be discussed, some say more fireworks could be ahead. At issue is how the city plans to spend about $1 million of the city's park-devel- opmentfund, earmarked for the develop- ment of new sports fields. Tied into that project is the ongoing issue of how much local athletic leagues will be charged to use the sports fields. With American Youth Soccer Organi- zatio~ and Saratoga Little League con- tracts touse Congress Springs Park expir- ingthis year, the city had proposed charg- ingthe leagues on aper-child basis, instead of the flat $1,500 fee they previously paid. Little League officials had agreed to pay the new fee if certain one-time improve- mentswould bemade toCongress Springs, but AYSO officials argued that the new fee would amount to thousands of dollars more a year for the league-an expense they couldn't afford, and were reluctant to pass along to the kids. City officials said the increase was necessary to help pay for maintenance of future playing fields. At the July 28 meeting, league officials and commissioners discussed the possi- bilitiesfor each of the city's 10 sites. Pro- ject manager Jay Beals walked partici- pants through the process of creating "wish lists" for each site. At the group's next meeting, set for Aug. 19, Beals said they will begin talking about maintenance costs based on the wish lists, then cempare the costs with the needs of the leagues and the city's financial situation. Those talks will lead to negotiations relating to fees. AYSO Commissioner Larry Fine said the league is willing to pay for maintenance, but only for mainte- nance. "How much does it actually cost to maintain those fields?" he said. "If you're going to start tacking on all sorts of other expenses, we'll be a long time negotiating. "~ At last week's meeting, Parks Cornmis- sionerJenny Crotty stressed that the pro- posedimprovements tothe playing fields are at risk of losing funding if an agree- ment can't be reached. Already, Crotty said, plans for the fields have been put on hold several times in the past few years as the city struggled with budget cuts. "This i§ ready it. The time is now," she said Park-development funds are paid into bydevelopersthrough the QuimbyAc~t.The city has accumulated about $2 million, but under the law, the money can only be used for new park proj ects---r-ot the maintenance of projects. In addition, the law states the funds must be used within five years, giving the city about a year to start spending or the money goes back to developers. "We keep running into stumbling blocks, but we need tojustplowthrough thisorthe atlileticneeds of our children will never be met." Ne+rn-: WtdA+eada~,S,i9a~ • s ~l~vs ~',; llurol~~~~~o ,, l~o~~.wtlx,~ 4, l~1°I~ Neighbors f~~,r fields would in~rea~e &y sARAti ~M~A~ ~- l~efare the meeting even started, it seetn~d obvious vtrhere both. sjdeS stood `., pa~reints, residents and yattth sports alS_. lihe~ nP o0 opposites sides of the room in I~IaT- _ shad ~aiie School's ~eteria, those m favor cif improvemeitts of the sehoot's sporty 6elci~ a tme side and those against the idea, ot# tlse other: The meeting -was the secopd of; three pteii by the marks ~ev~lopin~t~~ `Tn~k . Farce at which. residents can voice c4beerits abQUt proposals for sites arciuztc~ fbte.Cify. firstmeetiz~gwas'het~Ct<~2atBoo " 1. Irene Jacobs, an admioist~ratiyea~y ,: in _ City manager's offices, soul residents ui ~e , Foothill School area did cite coneerns.ati©ett_ how=the imgr©veme~ata.ruight affect tfic; wl~ief i tlsey said was alreadyintolerabte. But Saratoga Parks anal-Recreation Coin- iriissioner7enny Crottysaidthe nieetxng wasa fdr the most part, amicable and that resic~eiats, . school:offieialsand pareutsseemed +apeit do tYie proposals put fortlrfortlieFootlsifil~site. . But Marshall Lane was another matter: Residents who gathered at the school Oct. 27 -were and t :. :-site. t-b ti~,w .t4ifit4 But c "It's F.a._~ „ traffic nussi©rier Mary-Lynne Bernald: "We are cerned abut the amplifiEation of the [tr. sitttatibni. What I tiurik~the city needs to 1 is that these-safety issues do eicist." Mais~$ll Lane~resldetitDai~ovin Belln[etl sented apetetion signed ~ pthets do sumo ing streets that opposed any devetopnne ` sportafieldaat the school. Betineft cited sc>ttae called "a lCTioClt-dowerdrag.=out" b two y~ ago when Little League games ~ro~iosectfotthesclteol.V~ithresicle~ltop~ titins+€rstiorig tl~n, Heiuiett mid; "we are zled as to why the city would even.prczposf Qrte routa~rtirBte~' ` ,,. - -._ .- _ p Said area resident snd city Plarit~ng t:'otn- - -_ f~.: _ N(JYE~i-B~R 4, J991~ SARATOGA NEWS 9 j, ~ ~E~'~ ~ ca ~,.©~ ~ t6 ors ©~' ~ ye a tiu ~ ~ a ~ can ~ c°'u ~ ~ ~` C? ~ ~ 4' w ~ M~*` - +..~ ~, ~~,. y ao ~ ~ E7 ~ ~t y N W d D 4 CF ~ rr ~ Q: e4 y ~ n Q ra. ~ N R W CD ~. ~~_p. Vl r7 ~ ~ Rm ~r. ~+ ~ al QQQ~1,, C (D lV V! evenly divided between supporters fio thought the school and the area cold not suppcirt a possible an~cease s, of Bealsdscape Architecture, the ideas that task force members n up for the site. The proposal . econ&guring the infields, adding anti a eciiteession stand, creating a area in pla6e of the curreirt dri lot, ng trees.along the peri~teter of the roposal also Calls for designing the old inn way' that discourages alder i• 0 ~~/~7C~- residents asked to jolt fi~rra~ meet i. • _ ~e~a~~ta attcndatt3eetingre~a~ing~i~laY , field upgrades at Blue Hills SchQOI .and- Azuie Park. on. Thwtsda~ 1<Iov: ~9from6:3flto 8 p.m. The meeting will take pL'tce at Blue, Hills School, 1~4t1I]eSanka Ave„ and `Rill of#exresidentsa~han~tovope . concerns .oven the proposed improvements b~eloxe they: headt4 the drawingboard. Say Beals, from Beals Land"scope Atchitectt[re, will be qn h~nd,to expl~n the pro- pas~ls, aid representatives from the Saratoga Parks and Recreation Commission will also be present>. Blue Hills and the neighbor ing Azule Park is Qne of three locattp-~c theGity'sPsrk.~2eve1- opment Task. Force chose as sites where play fieldimprove meets would be the most ben- eficial to residents and organ. nixed sports graups> D,l:~CEAIBER,2,'P998 SARt1TOCR N1s.WS,. • • • ~~~~ Blue Hills/Azule neighbors fear fields will create hazard Proposal calls for soccer facility, restrooms and concession stand By SARAH LOMBARDO "If you build it, they will come," the voice said to Kevin Costner in the movie Field of Dreams. But that's exactly what some neighbors near Blue Hills School and Azule Park fear. The school and neighboring park are one of three school sites in Saratoga being considered for play field improve- ment and development by the city's Park Development Task Force. The task force's three different ideas for the site include merging Blue Hills School's cur- rentplay field with the city-owned Azule Park and establishing soccer fields, increasing parking either at the school's existing lot or off Goleta Drive, building restrooms and a concession stand, creat- ing ajogging trail and developing Azule Park, which is currently little more than a dirt lot, with a few trees. The plans also included the creation of a small park with picnic areas. But at an informational meeting spon- sored bythe city Nov.19,some neighbors said they fear what the additional sports facilities will do to parking and traffic in the residential area. "I think everyone who lives in this neighborhood knows that all three of those plans are a bad idea," one Blue Hills School neighbor said. "It's j ust not appro- priate tohave asoccer facility in a small, enclosed neighborhood." "There have been so many almost- cruncheswith bicycles and cars," one Gole- taDrive resident said. "It's very upsetting." Traffic and safety have been universal themes at all three of the park proposal meetings, Irene Jacobs, administrative analyst for the City Manager's office, said. Residents who live near Foothill Elemen- tary and Marshall Lane Elementary schools, the two other sites for proposed improvements, have told city staffers they fear what the improvements will do to their neighborhoods. "That was an underlying theme at all the meetings," Jacobs said. "The neigh- borshave legitimate concerns, and we def- finitely need to look into that," she added. But traffic wasn't the only issue at the Blue Hills/Azule meeting: Development of the park was also a concern for some residents who objected to creating a soc- cerfield out of park land. Al Roten, vice president of the Green- briarHomeowners Association, pointed out that Azule Park was deeded to the city about 30 years ago by residents who lived in the area. And those residents want a park, not a play field, he said. "We've lived with an undeveloped park for nearly 30 years," Roten said. "We don't want to have the entire park usurped for soccer players. We would like to see our park developed. That's a given. [Butt we want more park than the thumb- nailthat's left." Blue Hills School parents said they were also concerned about the safety of chil- dren atthe school. Azule Park backs up against Highway 85. By merging the school's play yard with a public park, one woman said, it makes it harder to set parameters for the stu- dents-and for adults. "How do you set up the parameters for an adult coming in who wants a kid to take home with him?"she said. But not all residents opposed the plans. "I personally think the best use for this park is for fields," one man said. Larry Fine, regional commissioner for the American Youth Soccer Organiza- tion,said the plan would allow for more local children to participate in local sports. "We had to turn away about 200 kids last year," he said. Fine said there is no other land available to build sports facili- ties, even if sports leagues could afford it. "Being able to find flat land for stuff like this is near impossible." According to Jacobs, the proposals for all three sites will be taken back to the drawing board and revised to take into account residents' comments. Once re~~~~Pd, the proposals will go before the Park Development Task Force, the Parks and Recreation Commission and then to the Saratoga City Council. "At this stage, what will come before the City Council for approval is the plan," Jacobs told residents-adding that once the plans are approved in concept, there will be environmental impact reports and traffic studies to see if the plans should move forward. "We can't do expensive tests and studies if the plans aren't even approved," she said. • Neighbors fear fields would increase traffic By SARAH LOMBARDO Before the meeting even started, it seemed obvious where both sides stood. Parents, residents and youth sports officials lined up on opposites sides of the room in Mar- shall Lane School's cafeteria, those in favor of improvements of the school's sports fields on one side and those against the idea on the other. The meeting was the second of three p~d by the Parks Development Task F at which residents can voice concerns about proposals for sites around the city. The first meeting was held Oct. 22 at Foothill School. Irene Jacobs, an administrative analyst in the city manager's office, said residents in the Foothill. School area did cite concerns about how the improvements might affect traffic, which they said was already intolerable. But Saratoga Parks and Recreation Com- missionerJenny Crotty said the meeting was, for the most part, amicable, and that residents, school officials and parents seemed open to the proposals put forth for the Foothill site. But Marshall Lane was another matter. Residents who gathered at the school Oct. 27 were about evenly divided between supporters and those who thought the school and the area around it could not support a possible increase in traffic and noise. Jay Beals, of Beals Landscape Architecture, presented the ideas that task force members had drawn up for the site. The proposal includes reconfiguring the infields, adding restrooms and a concession stand, creating a hardcourt area in place of the current dirt lot, and planting trees along the perimeter of the site. The proposal also calls for designing the baseball field in a way that discourages older kids from using the fields. Beals said use of the fields would be for farm and t-ball baseball games and for soccer prac- tices, which already take place on the property. 'And with the use ofthe impiovedfield-will. come stricter agreements with the sports orga- nizations,Beals said.. But one resident said that wasn't enough. "It's not the parking, it's the traveling to and from," she said, pointing out that the neigh- borhood has no sidewalks and virtually only one route into the school. Said area resident and city Planning Com- missioner Mary-Lynne Bernald: "We are con- cernedabout the amplification of the [traffic] situation. What I think the city needs to learn is that these safety issues do exist." Marshall Lane resident Darwin Bennett pre- sented apetitionsigned byothers on surround- ing streets that opposed any development of sports fields at the school. Bennett cited what some called "aknock-down-drag-out" battle two years ago when Little League games were proposed for the school. With resident opposi- tion sostrong then, Bennett said, "we are puz- zled as to why the city would even propose this facility." Bennett said he plans to present the petition to the City Council at its next meeting. According to Jacobs, the concerns present- ed byresidents will beincorporated into a new proposalforthesite. Bui,shecautioned, the process of improving the fields is far from com- plete: the proposals musi garner approval from the Parks and Recreation Commission and the City Council..:. . The park projects will be funded by the city's parks development fund. . The next meeting is planned for Thursday, Nov.19, from 6:30 to 9 p.m., at Blue Hills School. NOVEMBER 4, 1998 SARATOGA NEWS 9 ~- Vol. 45, No. 5 e~nesday, December~3, X1998 • 1 ~~VIARSHALL LANE RESIDENTS MOUNT OPPOSITION TO ~~ PLAYFIELDS PLAN `~$esidents tell City Council - ................ ~a,~..t.~:........................................................... Debate heats up over issue By $At2AH L,OMBARDO • ~ ~( arshall Lane-area residents V~ oPPosed to playfields at Marshall ~ Lane School were out in full force at the Saratoga City Council meeting Dec. lfi: - The group voiced opposition to pro- posedplans for the school playfields and gave councilmembers information pack- etsthat included letters from residents and a petition signed by almost 65 Marshall Lane neighbors opposed to the plan. Residents said the city's proposal to make improvements and construct sports fields on the grassy playground behind Marshall Lane School would"add to an already dan- geroussituation inthe neighborhood_ "We already have a traffic problem," one woman said. "That needs to be addressed." Marshall Lane dead-ends at Marshall Lane School. Streets leading into the area are narrow and do not have sidewalks. As it is, another neighbor said, the streets are too small to accommodate the trafficakeady in the neighborhood, much less more. The protest comes two weeks" after a small group of sports league volunteers and parents sought support from- the City Council for the construction of the fields. Those parents pointed out the desperate need formore and unproved playing fields Initial ideas_proposed for the site by the city Parks Development Task Force include reconfiguring the present infields, adding restrooms and a concession stand, Please turn to page 11 / ~ iG G'l~~Z ~` L~ ~ ,n,'Ni~i~~ L- ~J 1Vlarshall Lane Continued from page 1 replacing a dirt area with a hard court and planting trees. The plans for Marshall Lane School, which is one of three school sites pro- posed to get new fields, touched on an ongoing-and often bitter--debate between sports league officials who need more fields .to accommodate ever- increasing rosters and residents in the Marshall Lane area who say the school can't take any increase in use. In March 1997, neighbors mounted strong opposition to a proposal from Quito Little League and the Campbell Union School District to build two base- ballfields atMarshallLane School. ' Now, residents told councilmembers last weer, the idea for sports facilitses at Marshall Lane has returned, albeit from the city. The neighbors, one woman said, feel betrayed. Proposals for all three school sitesr-- Marshall Lane, Foothill and Blue Hills- haveyet to goback before the Parks and Recreation Commission. Once revised, the plans in concept must win the approval of the commission and uiti- matelythe City Council. • Vol. 45, No. 49 Wcdnesday, December 9,1998 PARENTS, SPORTS LEAGUERS VOICE SUPPORT FOR PLAYFIELD PLANS Marshall Lane residents seek support for the site Council stays out of battle By SARAH LOMBARDO group of about 15 Marshall Lane- arearesidents sought support from the Saratoga City Council Dec. 2 for proposed plans to make improvements to playfields at the school site. The council stopped short of entering the debate between residents regarding the playfield plans. Newly elected mayor Tim Shaw did offer words of encouragement: "I appreciate the fact that people came and spoke [on the issue], and really hope every- • one is listening," Shaw said. "If we work together, I'm certain that we can bring together something.the residents and the city can be proud of." The groups of parents and Little League volunteers said they had heard that a peti- tionfrom neighbors against the plan was in the works and asked councilmembers to back plans put forth by the city's Park Development Task Force, made up of members of area sports leagues, schools, and Parks and Recreation commissioners. Initial ideas for the school fields put forth at a public meeting Oct. 27 included changing the configuration of the Current infields, adding restrooms and a conces- sionstand, replacing a dirt area with hard court, and planting trees along the perime- ter of the site. Jay Beals, of Beals Land- scape Architecture, told residents the new fields would be used forfarm and'i' ball Please turn to page 9 INDEX News ..............9 Dining............30 Speak Out ........16 Calendar..........32 • Education .:::::...20 Sports ............37 Style .. ...23 Legal Notices .....41 o~~~n~#~CIaSSlftedS An affordable alternative to high priced classifteds ~,) G~~'.` 1 : lr ~'~, ~~'~~ ;1'' '~ ~ 1, ~/'y 1, ~ ~C~!'l.~i, ;, - ~ ~~ ~: y O v+ O d ~' ~. P~ c W~ ?~ Q n a ,~~vcoco a~~~ ~ two ~ m d ~ c °: n 0~,•~ =; .~» d ao ~ ~ W ~ p' ~ -^~ Cf f9 ~ A N H O A~ O t ! i~+ yfDVO'E~a~°~,w~'oy °!! Cn ~ ~ '~ ^'1 ~ ~ fn ~. A r ~ ~ ~, •-~~ ~~•8 ro a °' g~ ° 3 a . c. ~~~3m~~~o~'" $ ~ • o fD O ~' ~ ~ ~ O t i~ ~ CD C n ., n, y 'S Q. VJ y ~'t Q. ~ '~ n ~r ~ A7 ~' C7 f/~ yfl.. '~' '.y 'T ~/ ~ fD ~ ° ~ ~,c~ oba~woa~•o .n~.c =. ~ "J' ~ ate.. 1 `~.~ N O C N y UO p, ~„' ~ ~„~ CA Vi ~ fD ~ ~ t~D ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ A a`a~ aco ~ a° °' ~ =°' ~'~O ~ ~ c° H <° tea' co 5~ 5•~ ~ ., ~ ~ ~'~~.ao c y ~ w o =~ Y 'o~ ti ~'~...~ ~~co 5'~00o m 'aOB w ~/'~~ ~~ ~ y 7~'< Sa?~ o o ~ N CD `: '--' CD .r . 'J `~ .h f9 fD fD (D Vl ~ ~' rq Al m wm 8~-"°' ago ~~'~°;~= • ~~~GL'V L ?~~ 1, ~ , ~ ~ , • EDITORIAL ~`' H ovv th 1 n ~ mere and how the :are ,~ ~'~) aratogaseemslikethekindofplace where children ought to playsand- ~J lot baseball during thespring. The kind of place where young people should be able to earn a few bucks picking prunes .:and cutting cots during the summer. Saratogaseems like the kind of place where school administrators might-wait to find o ut whether the fruitcrop is early orlatebefore determining the opening date of school. Saratoga seems like it should be his kind of place. But the truth is, houseslong ago replaced the orchards, and young- stersare less likelyto playsandlat.base- ball than.they are to join organized teams. In spite ofthe fact that Saratoga isn't exactly what it once :was, residents and elected officials have tried hard to preserve what remains of the city's rural beginnings and small-town sense of community..:.. •, ••~ n mi-TT A DV ..But what suited families generations agomaynotsuitfamiliestoday. In hisremarksat the Saratoga GityCoun- cil meeting last week, newlyelected coon- oilman Nick Streit pointed aut thatfor the first time in manyyears, there areparents of young childrenserving on the counca7. That parents ofyoung children may :have a different perspective than others in the community is a point well taken. And it is a factthat this is aperspective that hasnot been particularlywellrep- resented inrecent years. Thosewho would like to think it'shealth- ierfor youngsters toplay sandtotbasebatl :than toparticipate in organized teams,.far instance,.are probably not ineliued t©be enthusiastic about the city's efforts tobuild playfieias on one of three sites in Saratoga. . People who'dratherleave things alone and not encourage noise and traffic are the , oneswho've beenheardfrom sofas atplay- fieldmeetingsoverthepast fewmonths. `But now a group of residents in the vicinity. of Marshall Lane School <has endorsed the idea of playing `&elds-- complete with restroomsand aconces- sionstand- rightn tlteirneighborhood. Are these people crazy? .More likely, i`hey're,people whohave children who need aplace toplayin the organized sports that are in vogue today. The youth population is growing'by leaps and bounds in Saratoga.'No one knowsthat better than school adminis- trators who are trying to stay one j ump ahead of the increasing school pop ulatipn. As much as Saratogans like to cling to the past; the time has come for the corm- muzuty to cAnsicler seriously how best<to serve the needs of its growingpopulation of yotug people. ~J - -- w-~~.~~•,•,•~y,•+.,~•,•.,.~,~-'.~,wca~.snnwxi7~; ~i~At+7CF1~ practices; fall and spring sa~ccer; ciinics:~ai3_T~taYa~~f a develc~pmenc such as:tl~is ccititi~.r~f liel~Z:l;t~te; residents vfrtre tir~entbriar neitba~t~~ ~b noiseandssfetyiss~_. _ . ::.:.:.. ...: . .:::..::.: : :..... ::.::. . ...:.::.. .: 't~lu'te we ~ s~tgped tites~vel- opme~ ofpractic~ fields in cx~c ~tith~~,at~e, sae wouldnottlile ci`Catitigaitgr~s~~~.g~~:~; ».~~ 1..1L _. ._. ,` :'l ~iistypeofdevelop as the;Heitxg~ t3r±cl~~ • °:SaratflgaCoin~nututy:I acres, wlsich are.curte funds in m2~intenanc8: Azule and:K~evirilvlora anti the city could estab -- r...~y,~ Jwaa RUV~u:c vutA1YC111G GTit, s ~l!urr~il2itl~iu~had asigtnficantnuml~erofplayets an their teamsiv_~~reasdistantasFremunt:vr~ccr#ts~'alte :: _.:.. ..:~~at~tt~g~i3:Y50war~tstoinciudepiayctsfrom outsideSa~ata ~~tlteys>1a~u}drecluire.a.sirehargeforout-of--area la rs like' P ye . tnaaxyofttcrSp+prts~guestit~~'~Lesefeesrnttldassistinmaittiain- ~~'~'i3''sm~e's. ather:sports,suchasLittleLeague have es~ .`~'~iis:.is a aror :vcralotlierstlerpk:areas;:~.ks>_.;_'t~t;w©i ... ..,. . ...:......:..... . the.samehistvr~t:iitdtard~ees;:` ;mul i os~nallerhei}t~earchandstherea€fier~°~:; ::.~Vick,u~tid.; nupi#~eraf parsicipants, whynotAYSjd? ~~~ndesire f©rmoreaihletic :xfa~l_:id~+u;:we seed to use our city . eaEe problems withizi the smai! elemen- . ivheit:w+~ have a perfect piece 4f prog» lsi~tiagauiused~:I.et'sstop trying tofita nx ipi~an elementary school play yart!! ~t1ye nrrSertgul! Way in Saratoga. r • , Not all Marshall Lane residents want fields The misleading headline "Parents, sports leaguers voice support for play field plans," in the Dec. 9 issue of the SARATO- cANews isbiased. The people who spoke at the Dec. 2 City Council meeting were mostly from other cities, not Saratoga. Your story neglected to mention that 60 immediate neighbors to Marshall Lane School signed a petition against sports fields at Marshall Lane for good reasons. Your reporter was at the Marshall Lane meeting and knew the facts. Good reporting demands that you state all sides ofxhe issue. • ELLEN MARSHALL Saratoga . LETTERS Heritage Park would make good playfield If we can't look back to the good old days when we picked prunes and such, as the editorial in the Dec. 9 issue of the $ARATOCA NEws points out, then we should be able to take a portion of Heritage Orchard and make it into playing fields. According to the editorial, we must act in today's world. So, if playing fields are a greater need, put them at that site, not into an already congested neighborhood such as Marshall Lane. DERRY BARRETT Marilyn Lane • r L' • ca~NT~Y l~ew la ~ fields a,re By L,aRRY FtrrE and MARx Lt~tsr~Y s wo of the many volunteers in AYSQ, dedicated to youth development through soccer, we would like to cor- rect same of the statements inthe commentary byNick and Karen Seroff zn the Dec. lb issue of the SARATOGA Nsws. Although weare Sure that the Seroffs stated whatthey believe to be facts, several of theirstatements need to be corrected and clarified. In addition, we would like to provide some addition- al thoughts forpeople to considerwith respect to this difficult question regarding where to put additional occer fields (also referred o as flat grass).. As longtime Saratoga residents and AYSQ volunteers, as well as,parents, we have come to appreciate the value of an organiza- tionprirnarilycommitted toyouth development and secondarily to sports. AYSQ provides an opportunity for all children to par- ticipate in a positive, team-oriented activity with an equal chance. • No oneisexcludedindependentofskill,sizeorfinanciaisituation. Although Saratoga doesnot yet have a program for children with special needs, fine hree local AYSO regions are getting together to build such a;program, referred to as a VIP Program. :Saratoga. AYSQ is part of a national organization in all 50 states with more than one Trillion childrenrun by volunteers except for a few_paid~~employeesat the nationalheadquarters. The previous comments are important to help people under- stand why it is:impossible for any AYSQ regionto implement limitedrestrictions orfee differentials. Itis againstthe core vat uesand philosophies of the organization to prevent any family from having their children playwherever they choose. Two of the key tenets of AYSD are "Everyone Plays"aril "Open Registration.» National AYSD Hiles do not allow different fees or limitedregistrationsbasedpnaddress;thereforeivecouldnathave an AYSQ organization with either of these differences. With regard to the Seroff s statement about "a signiCcant num- ~~ , ~ ~y~~ ~eede~l `for the bids' berof players who five asdistantas FremoafiorScotts Valley," our database only has one family (out of719j with twochildren (ouiof 1,190) fromthese twocitiesandthis'familyhasvolunteeredmany trnSeIfishhoursincoachingandrefereeing. Lessthan6percentof ` our players do notlive in Saratoga, Los Gatos or Monte Sereno. As for concerns overtraffic and noise, soccer games are limited to only 10 Saturdays and two Sundays in the fall. Aspring program wauldhave similarlimited schedules:Although the fields would be used for practice, thiswouldbesimilar to thecurrentsituation at Argonaut ElementarySchool, which has not been a problem. The concern about combining school fields and parks!for youth sports should not be an issue with so many successful examples in neighborittg cities, With respectto noise,weare troubled by those who would rather hear freeway sounds than enjoy the cheers of familiesand kids having fun, whilelearning. The Saratoga community owes'its children opportunities to grow and develop. AY5D in Saratoga and around the United States has had years of experience and demonstratedsuccess in .providing this. As long as the adults quarrel over wherexo put the fields, our children become the losers. Many.. Saratoga parents have volunteered countless valuable hours to the development ofplans tomeet the needsof the com- munityandthe children. The developmenf plans presentedat the Blue Hills meeting are norfor AYSO,nor are he fields for any business or adults or outside interests, but rather for our chiI- dren. Intact, more fields will mean more work for youth sports groups and the need farmore volunteers: But you know what? It is worth'the effort, so that we do not h ave: to telisome children ihatthey could notbe ono team because Saratoga did not want to hear them having fun playing soccer on a Saturday afternoon. Aswe sayin AYSQ, "It'sforihe K.ids." Larry Fzne is the regional commissioner for the Saratoga AYSQ; Mark Lipsky is the assistant commissioner. • "~ ~~/c~7' ~L C ~' ~~~'~'' i ~ ~ Fields will threaten neighborhood safety I am a resident of Saratoga and live on Ravenwood Drive, near the Marshall Lane School. I am deeply concerned and troubled over the proposed redesign, development and usage of the athletic fields at Marshall Lane. I have lived on Ravenwood Drive for close to six years and planned to stay many more. The problems that I see with this proposal are as follows: Safety/Traffic: I have two young daugh- ters and a third child on the way. This neighborhood, consisting of Ravenwood Drive (Marshall Lane side of Quito), Maz- shall Lane and Marilyn, has more than 32 young children who like to play outside and in the street. The number of children is increasing as more young couples move azea has limited access to Marshall School, narrow streets and no side- walks. We already have a significant traf- ficproblem during the week during peak school hours. Adding more vehicle traffic during the week throughout each day exacerbates this problem. I have heard that there may be four dif- ferentLittle League games proposed for each Saturday which would add poten- tiallyhundreds ofcars traveling down our streets. There would also be AYSO soccer games as well. This poses a hazard to our children who are on in-line skates, skate boarding, riding bicycles, throwing base- 12 SARATOGA NEWS JANUARY20, l999 • balls and footballs, etc. This is completely unacceptable. All it takes is one accident! Quality of Life: I and many neighbors didn't move to Saratoga to be deluged with traffic during the week and weekend. The traffic isdangerous, noisy and a nuisance. Many neighbors have problems backing out of driveways because traffic backs up at Ravenwood and Marshall Lane by Quito. Increased Use: If this proposal were to take effect, Marshall Lane's field would be sought by more groups wishing to use the facilities. We would not be able to stop the increased use. We would face further traf- ficand safety problems and further degra- dation toour quality of life. While improving playing fields for kids is a good cause, it cannot be at the expense of our neighborhood. I have headd that this plan would be for the greater good of the community. Proponents say that this plan would be serving far more children than the neighborhood families affected by the decision. This would be a grave injustice. Our country was founded on the principles of respecting and protecting the rights of the individual, and of the minority. A similar proposal was rejected a few years back because of traffic and safety issues. This proposal must be stopped again. BLAIR CONRAD Ravenwood Drive Many options to consider for fields My wife and I live in thaaimmediate neigh- borhood ofMarshall Lane School. W e, like most of our neighbors, are very concerned about the field use expansion proposed by the city's Fields Task Force and how it will change the character of our neighborhood. The task force of "user groups" selected Marshall Lane as one of the priority sites to fill the need for organized sports fields in our area, although no one from our neighbor- hoodwas represented in that process. _ Initially; we couldn't believe that Mar- shall L.anewas even being considered. Here is a small school with very little on-street parking and limited access on two narrow, dead-end residential streets. The school traffic has already been growing steadily over the past few years to aridiculously dan= gerous level Now, instead of traffic confined to schoolday mornings and afternoons [it will beJ all day every Saturday from car trips, personnel and service vehicles for conces- sionstands, restroomsand fields. Nomen- tionyet has been made by any of the "user groups" about the many children in our neighborhood who use the streets and school to ride bikes, skate, play and walk. As we understand, most of the park fund to pay for the proposals came from a few large developments, notably Greenbri- arBelgrove onSaratoga Avenue. Devel- opments ofthis size are not likely to occur many more times in the future, so it is unlikely that the city will have this amount of funds to develop park land again. Why not use the fund to develop asports-ori- entedpark that has the space, location and access that these activities require? The suggestion of using part of the city's Heritage Orchard Park adjacent to the library is an excellent one. The whole impetus for doubling upon school use for sports came from the prob- lem of maintenance costs, which are not covered by the park fund; the school dis- trictswould be responsible for maintain- ingthe new facilities. This does not allow logic to be the first consideration in choos- ingwhere the fields go in. The decisions are made based on where they will be main- tained, although trying to patch in to schools' already strained resources does not seem realistic. Instead, supporting a bond to fund maintenance costs at an ath- leticpark would be a realistic and achiev- able solution. And finally, the city should not discount user fees, perhaps on a slid- ingscale, tohelp defray costs and assure the continuous quality of our facilities. We believe there are many long-term solutions that make sense, and that can achieve the goals of more sports fields without sacrificing people's homes to do it. If the city and the council are really com- mitted toproviding all its residents with a high quality of life, they will be committed to finding the best, long-teen solution, not a short-term one that will compromise so much. I hope they have the courage to try. STEVE KURASCH Ravenwood Drive l~ighborhoods rally a~ainst playfield~ By STEVE ENDERS he first true spring evenings have descended upon Saratoga, creating an idyllic setting around one of the city's many well-used parks. The sudden warm weather brings tee-ball coaches out in shorts, and a young family runs with their golden retriever on the field at Blue Hills Elementary School. In adjacent Azule Park, a narrow stretch of unkempt orchard separates the houses from Highway 85 below. Cars there stream past, creating a false sound of breakers crashing on a beach. . The scene couldn't be better for an urban area, and residents there want to keep it that way. They're also not alone in this corner of town. On the opposite side of Saratoga, many of the neighbors around Marshall Lane Elemen- tarySchool feel the same way. They want their little neighborhood school to stay small-no renovated playfields, theysay, because they'll attract too many people for the quaint area. They scoff at being called "NIMBYs" because many have children playing sports in and around the city already.. Other parents serve as coaches and can appreciate a good patch of grass to play on. They just don't think the proposed locations are sensible ones. Sometimes it takes a crisis to get a group to organize, and that's what's happened in these two Saratoga neighborhoods in response to [he city's plan to build new fields so more chil- drencan play sports. And in a few weeks, it's all going to come to a head when the city's parks and recreation commissioners and a mediator attempt to solve a seemingly unsolvable problem. In those meetings-dates are still being hashed out-the city's representatives and ayet- to-be-named mediator will bring the opposition face to face with supporters and user groups to try and reach some sort of compromise. Citing the long-completed Parks and Recre- ationTask Force decisions, the city argues that the rest of the city wants playfields, and the sites that have been chosen are the best ones avail- ab1e.Theschool districts which own the sites, the city maintains, have verbally pledged support in maintainingthe fields once they'reinstalled. The neighborhood groups say they're adamantly opposed to any such renovation, and they're willing to fight to the finish, they say. "We feel [the meetings] are a redundancy," says Marshall Lane neighborhood leader Lisa Kurasch. "We've expressed our views. It's like we're going through another hoop, but we're hoping the City Council will hear it." Councilmembers probably will, eventually. If the Parks and Recreation Commission votes to approve the playfields plan, the City Coun- cilwill have final say. Please turn to page I1 APRIL Zl, 1999 SARATOGA.NEWS 9 Playfields Continued from page 9 fields at Congress Springs, already a site of a large sports complex. Traffic, parking and safety are the major concerns. Besides that, Marshall Lane res- identsworry that Saratoga money will be used on school fields that aren't in the Saratoga school district. In the Blue Hills neighborhood, resi- dentsthink the city can get a better bang for its buck by building the fields in a cen- Kurasch says that the neighborhood, while opposed to the school being used by more base- ballteams, iswilling towork with the city to find a solution. Unexplored options include, she says, a bond initiative to buy suitable land, work- ingwithother nearby cities to use their parks or finding an alternative site within Saratoga. In the Blue Hills/Azule Park area, about 150 residents on many streets have signed their names to petitions asking the city not to proceed with the fields. About 40 families have rallied around anewly-formed neighborhood organi- zationthere aswell, which holds regular meetings to keep residents updated on the plan's status. Kurasch says about 80 people are against the plans around Marshall Lane. Eddie Sweeney, who says golf balls often end up in his back yard from duffers illegally practicing their chip shots, will likely represent the neighborhood at its meeting with the city. "There's no compromise," he says, "we would've liked to have been consulted at an earlier stage. The ideal outcome for the soccer organizations and for us is seeing Central Park [the Heritage Orchard] used." In two other neighborhoods, vocal opposi- tionhas been relatively silent. Plans to build fields at Foothill Elementary School have gone mostly unopposed, as have plans for tral location, like the Heritage Orchard, where there would also be plenty of room for parking and vehicle access in and out of the area. Neighbors say they sympathize with parks commissioners, who have toiled as long as the residents have over the present situation. They are; despite that sympathy, sticking to their guns. "We've got 34 kids now-that's pretty new," Kurasch says. "We do block parties, we know each others' lives and watch each others' houses. We've had a good com- munitybut what this has done is brought it out more acutely."