Young Softball Players Plead With Council to Fix Their Fields, Restrooms

After hearing from some of its youngest constituents Tuesday, Murrieta City Council agreed that repairs to the restrooms and softball fields at California Oaks Sports Park are desperately needed.

Council members voted 5-0 in favor of allocating $38,140 from Community Services District funds for the renovation project. Another $25,000 has already been set aside for field repairs, specifically to add brick dust to the park’s five fields.

The park is designated for use by softball leagues, which includes about 400 Murrieta Valley Girls Softball Association players. Supported by at least 50 audience members at Tuesday’s City Council meeting, a brave few of those players stated their case.

“I wanted to make sure you know what us players go through when we play on the fields at Cal Oaks,” said Leilani Gonzales, a 7-year-old MVGSA pitcher. “Field five is constantly muddy and flooded; I have fallen in the mud many times and many of my teammates have…Our coach sometimes has to use cardboard.”

Player Sydni Lambert told City Council that because of holes in the centerfield, she and many of her teammates have been injured.

“It makes it complicated for us to enjoy our game while trying to make sure we are safe at the same time,” Sydni said.

Nine-year-old Audrey Garcia complained about the restrooms. She said they are “very scary” and that she and her little sister are sometimes afraid to go in them.

“Sometimes I don’t go even though I need to,” Audrey said. “I should be comfortable using the bathroom.”

Council members listened as parents also took the floor during the public comment portion of the meeting.

MVGSA Board Member Roxanne Rountree said previous pleas to the city have been "ignored." The state of the fields has even caused some players to join leagues in other cities, she said. And she was supported by others in attendance when she said she believes the fields at Los Alamos Sports Park—where the boys play baseball—receive better upkeep.

“I struggle to explain to (my daughters) why the boys play on nicer fields than them,” said Rountree, whose daughters play for MVGSA. “For the parents in the room tonight, this is a safety issue...We ask that the city provide the same meticulous care.”

Council members expressed concern when they learned that some were looking at it as a gender issue.

“To have our young girls feeling like second-class citizens as athletes...We better pay real close attention on this one,” said Mayor Pro Tem Kelly Bennett.

Councilman Harry Ramos empathized because he has two daughters.

“If that is the perception then we have to do something to change that,” Ramos said.

But according to Assistant City Manager Jim Holston, who oversees the Community Services District, the restrooms and fields at both parks are maintained by the same city-contracted crew on the same frequency. The issue, he said, is that California Oaks is an older facility.

He said, however, that budget-saving measures taken in the last four years have included cutting back on the number of times per week the dirt in the fields is turned. Previously, it was five days a week; presently it is once, he said.

“We need to revisit that,” Holston said.

He also said that plans to renovate the aging facilities at the park were tabled four years ago when the city suffered its first round of layoffs. Monies that were being set aside for the restoration project were instead used for everyday maintenance and upkeep.

It was in August, when Councilman Randon Lane broached the subject of repairing the California Oaks facilities, that the effort was renewed.

Lane said he “cringes” when he has to take his two young sons to the restrooms there.

“We need to spend some money to fix these issues...we have heard the people speak,” Lane said.

At the Council’s prompting, the Community Services District identified between $225,000 and $250,000 worth of restoration work needed to bring the park’s amenities up to par.

Here is the city staff breakdown of the work and associated costs according to a rough estimate received by a contractor:

• Demolition of existing shade structure and upper trellis, $10,000;
• Removal and replacement of approximately 300 feet of fascia, $5,000;
• Construction of a new, lower shade structure and possible upper trellis, $30,000;
• Provide and install four hollow metal doors, frames and hardware, $6,000;
• Minor touch up to plaster and paint interior and exterior of all buildings, $10,000;
• Replace fixtures, faucets, hardware parts, and accessories in all four restrooms, $12,500;
• Acid wash and seal floors in all four restrooms, $8,000;
• Add new and/or replace existing partitions on stalls in all four restrooms, $13,000;
• Add brick dust to all ball fields, $25,000; and
• Remove and replace concrete on pool deck, $108,000.
  

According to a report prepared for Council, “Staff has evaluated its funding situation and has identified a fund balance of $38,140, which can be allocated toward this project. While this is not enough to complete all the needs identified above, it will go a long way toward resolving the immediate issues of the restrooms and overhead shade area.

“With the $38,140, staff believes the floors to the outside restrooms can be acid-washed and sealed, the interior painted, the fixtures and existing partitions replaced, and additional partitions added where needed. In addition, staff is hoping to address some of the concerns with the wood trim on the exterior of the building that is part of the shade structure.”

Additionally, $25,000 to add brick dust to the fields was identified within the Community Services District’s current operating budget.

According to Holston, the restroom work should take a few months to complete once it is bid out and a contract awarded. He said while the work is underway, portable restrooms will be placed at the park.

Murrieta Mayor Rick Gibbs urged staff to find a way to complete all the repairs needed at the park.

“This has been a revelation to a lot of the folks up here on the Council,” Gibbs said. “...It is clear with everything that has been said tonight that we should, the city should, be embarrassed. We shouldn’t say to the people of Murrieta that this is a budget issue.

“When these young ladies took the microphone and talked about their injuries they had sustained on our fields, that is risk management, that is public safety and they should not have had to come out here tonight to get our attention.”

Gibbs said more money needs to be found, and quickly, to complete all the repairs.

“That might be December or January...but we have to put this in our Capital Improvements Plan because this is a matter of service to our citizens, particularly our younger citizens.”