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Published April 23rd, 2014
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Soul Searching for the Sports Facility Subcommittee
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| By Sophie Braccini |
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The Joint Ad Hoc Facilities Planning Subcommittee is a large, 12-member body that includes representatives from Saint Mary's College, the Moraga School District and Campolindo High School, town staff and elected officials, and the Moraga Sports Alliance. They meet with a similar objective: to provide residents with the sports and recreation facilities they need. But as users, landowners and administrators they have different perspectives, and during their third monthly meeting April 7 there were times when they didn't seem to hear what each other had to say. Progress was made nonetheless as the subcommittee continued to seek better ways to use existing recreation facilities, define a common vision of recreation in Moraga and identify the responsibilities each stakeholder will carry.
The meeting started with participants listing what they were expecting from the process. All indicated their desire to work collaboratively to better serve the recreation needs of residents. On the agenda was a discussion of the establishment of Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) for shared use of facilities. When that discussion started, differences between participants surfaced.
Subcommittee vice chair Chris Maher, of the Moraga Sports Alliance, said that before MOUs are signed a structure should be put in place that would coordinate needs and administer the availability of fields and facilities. "We need a permanent group that does this," he said. Moraga's town manager, Jill Keimach, was in the audience and suggested that field owners get together to create a calendar. She tasked Jay Ingram, parks and recreation director, with the responsibility of putting it together. She also called for a long range vision.
Moraga School District governing board member Shari Simon also resisted discussing MOUs first. "What is it that we are trying to create and achieve?" she asked. She proposed a creative process in order to gel a common vision. "MOUs are to be signed once the projects are defined," she added.
Councilmember Dave Trotter insisted that MOUs should be discussed separately now to better use what is available. He suggested bilateral conversations between the five entities that have a stake in local sports and recreation.
The need expressed by the Sports Alliance was for more open fields, something they believe could be accommodated in the relative short term at Joaquin Moraga Intermediate School if a partnership with the school district is established. Simon reminded the group that the cost and responsibility to maintain infrastructure also needs to be taken into account, and school board member Charles McNulty insisted that the district's current facilities are adequate for its needs, the district's first duty is to educate children, and its budget is tight enough as it is.
Since Moraga is likely to be getting money from the Palos Colorados Development (see sidebar), staff and elected officials are thinking about possible new public facilities such as a gymnasium, a community center or a swimming pool, that could be funded by the town; in partnership with other stakeholders, or not.
Resident Edy Schwartz asked that other recreation users be not forgotten by the discussion group and the plan for sports and recreation facilities should be geared to users from 3 to 99 years old.
Since the town owns very little flat land and often has to rent facilities from the school district for its recreation offerings, staff is trying to find options on its own properties. Ingram presented a proposal for a multi-field facility on the "back-forty" (an area at the back of the Moraga Commons Park that is little used) - a 166 by 135-foot building that would house two full size basketball courts or four volleyball courts. The project, a steel frame on a concrete slab, is in a very preliminary study phase; many issues need to be resolved, such as parking and ADA access.
The next meeting of the subcommittee is scheduled for 7 p.m. on May 5 at the Hacienda de las Flores.
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The Palos Colorados development project that seems to have been going nowhere fast is, according to planning staff, starting to move forward again. The town expects that grading will begin next year for 120-home project. Once the developer obtains the grading permit, the town will receive $2.25 million within 30 days and an additional $3.5 million within 120 days; the conditions of approval include up to $3 million for the town when the homes are built.
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Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA