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Home My WebLink About22 - Use of Newport Beach Playing FieldsAgenda Item No. 22 April 12, 1999 COMMUNITY SERVICES DEPARTMENT Arts & Cultural - Library ' Recreation - Seniors isTo: Mayor and Members of City Council From: Steve Hunt, Senior Recreation Manager Re: Use of Newport Beach Playing Fields At the Council Meeting on March 22, Councilman Adams asked staff to report on the use of ballfields citywide. This following information has been assembled to identify the current and future status of the City's active park system. Presented within is a description of available fields, the organized activities scheduled on these fields, current scheduling practices and future park developments of additional with playing fields. Park type designations are included in response to a request by Councilman Ridgeway. ATHLETIC FIELDS IN NEWPORT BEACH The City of Newport Beach currently has 10 park sites that contain a variety of athletic fields – 3 on the west side of the City, 7 on the east side: West Side East Side Bob Henry Bonita Creek Mariners Buffalo Hills Peninsula Eastbluff • Orange Coast Soccer League Grant Howald Irvine Terrace • Pacific Coast Bobby Sox Softball Lincoln • Pony League Baseball -East San Miguel Three of these park sites provide six fully lighted fields — Bonita Creek (3 fields), Lincoln Athletic Center (2 fields), and Grant Howald Park. In addition, there are three Newport-Mesa Unified School District sites adjacent to City park sites — Mariners, Eastbluff and Anderson Schools — which provide additional playing fields and are scheduled by the City. In total the City manages 20 playing fields. The District has additional fields at Corona del Mar High, Ensign, Newport Harbor High, Newport Heights and Harbor View, the use of which are scheduled by the District, not the City. Scheduling field use for nine City co-sponsored sports groups, City -run youth sports, adult softball and flag football is a complex matter. Factors include field lights, multi -use, proximity to residents, location, school property, size of field space, size of user groups, short and long term maintenance, soil conditions and extended seasonal play by the individual youth sports. A detailed schedule of use is attached. ORGANIZATIONS USING THE FIELDS The City Recreation Services Division co-sponsors eight organized youth sport groups and an adult rugby club: • AYSO Region 57 - East • Newport Beach Little League Baseball -East • AYSO Region 97 -West • Orange Coast Soccer League • Back Bay Rugby Club • Pacific Coast Bobby Sox Softball • Harbor Area Baseball -West • Pony League Baseball -East • Junior All- American Football Use of Newport Beach Playing Fields Page 2 Co-sponsorship permits these groups to have priority use of designated fields during their traditional season. The only charge to these groups, with the exception of the Back Bay Rugby Club, is the fee for use of the field lights. However, many of these groups contribute substantial amount of funds to maintain and upgrade their respective field areas. The City Recreation Services Division programs youth football, adult football and softball on the fields: • City Youth Sports — 180 participants annually • City Adult Softball and Football — 5,500 participants annually Occasionally, when available, field space is provided on a rental basis to other groups. Participation in the youth organizations has been growing at approximately 10% annually, creating added needs for field space to accommodate practices and games. The need has been compounded by extended playoff or all -star seasons as well as prominent organized off season programs. City programmed adult softball remains at approximately 375 teams annually. The number of teams is restricted by field space availability. Most of these games are played under the lights with the exception of a series of summer league games, played without lights with the extended daylight hours of summer. FIELD USE SCHEDULES Non - lighted fields are typically scheduled Monday through Friday, 3pm to dusk; Saturday, Sam to dusk; and Sunday, 9am to dusk. Night lighted fields are normally scheduled until 10pm with a 15 minute window for clean up. Lighted fields are scheduled to automatically turn off no later than 10:15pm. Lights are turned off earlier when the schedule permits. Weekend use of lights, with few exceptions, is not permitted. Requests for Friday night use at Lincoln has traditionally been presented to the Parks, Beaches and Recreation Commission for review. TYPES OF PARKS The Recreation & Open Space Element of the General Plan, approved June 22, 1998, utilized the following definitions: Communitv Park — Community parks serve the entire City and are easily accessible via arterial roads. Community parks are those with improvements such as community buildings, parking, swimming, facilities for picnicking, active sports, and other facilities that serve a larger population. Neighborhood Park — Neighborhood parks serve all ages and are generally one to eight acres in size ... Neighborhood Parks contain a wide variety of improvements which can include turf areas, active sports fields and courts, community buildings, play apparatus and picnic facilities . . . Neighborhood parks which include unique recreational facilities, such as basketball courts, tennis courts, turf areas, active sports fields, community buildings, unique play areas, or view parks are considered citywide resources used by all citizens. Classified as neighborhood parks are Bob Henry, Peninsula, Buffalo Hills, Irvine Terrace, and San Miguel; classified as community parks are Mariners, Bonita Creek, Eastbluff, Grant Howald, and Lincoln. 0 In Use of Newport Beach Playing Fields Page 3 FUTURE SITES Future park development includes: • Arroyo Park — A multi -use softball /soccer field with lights, currently being constructed by The Irvine Company; expected to be completed before the end of FY 1999/00. • Bonita Canyon Park — In design phase; will provide 3 baseball and 4 soccer fields and 1 multi- purpose field; anticipated completion FY 2000/01. • Newport Ridge Park, in the down coast — Some co- sponsored youth groups have been able to obtain limited use of the park by agreements with the homeowner association. • Newport Coast Elementary School and /or Newport Coast Community Park, also in the down coast — Possible future field use when built. • Caltrans West Site — Possible future construction of active park. Attachment Ll 0 3 Fact Sheet on City Athletic Fields Athletic fields scheduled by Community Services Department Anderson District Soccer / baseball Buffalo Hills City Soccer baseball Eastbluff #1 City Small soccer / pony baseball Eastbluff #2 District Soccer/ youth softball Eastbluff #3 District Small soccer/ youth softball San Miguel City Soccer / baseball CYC City Soccer/ youth softball / adult softball Lincoln #1 City Soccer / baseball / adult softball Lincoln #2 City Soccer / baseball Lincoln #3 City Soccer Lincoln #4 City Small soccer/ small baseball Lincoln #5 City Small soccer/ small baseball Bonita Creek FF City Soccer/ youth football Bonita Creek #1 City Youth softball /adult softball Bonita Creek #2 City Youth softball Irvine Terrace City Small soccer/ youth softball Fields on West side of Ba Bob Henry #1 City Bob Henry #2 City Mariners #1 City Mariners #2 District Peninsula City Lights Lights Lights Lights Lights Lights Soccer/ baseball Youth softball soccer/ baseball soccer / baseball Soccer / youth softball / rugby / adult football (District Sites not included: Ensign, NHHS, CdMHS, Newport Heights, Harbor View) Participation by Youth Groups that utilize City Fields 1995 1996 1997 1998 AYSO Soccer- Region 57 East 1,400 1,500 1,600 1,800 AYSO Soccer- Region 97 West 1,380 1,735 1,850 1,970 Back Bay Adult Rugby Club' na na na 50 City Adult Flag Football na na 160 240 City Adult Softball 5,614 5,530 5,502 5,208 City Youth Flag Football 102 96 103 179 Junior All American Football 120 180 1 190 1 275 Newport Beach Little League Baseball(East) 596 750 756 757 Newport Harbor Baseball (West) a 750 800 720 840 Orange Coast United Soccer' 275 255 315 140 Pacific Coast Bobby Sox Softball 430 400 400 450 Pony Baseball - Newport East 62 45 45 40 Slammers Futbol Club 4 na na na 144 Total 10,729 11,291 11,641 12,093 Notes: 1 AYSO Soccer- Region 97 West is approximately 2/3 Newport Beach residents • 2 Back Bay Rugby Club co- sponsored began in 1998 3 Newport Harbor Baseball (West) Is approximately 2/3 Newport Beach residents 4 Slammers Futbol formed In 1998, split off from Orange Coast Soccer 4/12/99