City of Lafayette Memorandum

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Augustine Cannon
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1 City of Lafayette Memorandum For: Lafayette Planning Commission By: Jennifer Russell, Parks, Trails & Recreation Director Meeting Date: May 4, 2015 Subject: Homes at Deer Hill - Sports Field Component Introduction At the special Planning Commission meeting on April 8, 2015, the Commission discussed the components of the Homes at Deer Hill Project including the proposed multi-purpose sports field. After taking testimony from the public, the Chair and other members of the Commission questioned the need for the sports field and raised concerns that it seemed to be an imposition in the proposed landscape and setting. The Planning Commission Chair requested that the Parks, Trails & Recreation Director attend the May 4, 2015 meeting to help the Commission understand how the sports field fits into the larger plan for recreation facilities in the city. The Chair asked whether the sports field was needed; whether there are alternative sites; how it will be managed; the pros and cons of the field design; and whether/why it needs to be full-sized. Some commissioners were also concerned about access concerned that the parking lot is too distant from the field which could lead to congestion at the drop-off area with parents waiting to pick up. Responses to Questions Posed by the Planning Commission Why is a sports field included as one of the planned recreation facilities in the Homes at Deer Hill development project? An excerpt from PTR Chapter IV of the Lafayette General Plan states: The City's playing fields are now used to capacity by organized sport groups, such as the Lafayette Moraga Youth Association (LMYA), the Lafayette Moraga Soccer Club (LMSC), and the Lafayette Little League. This demand is only expected to increase. The City has concluded that for the time horizon of this plan, there will be a persistent need for additional playing fields. To further address this question, it is important to review the public feedback that was received prior to the adoption of the 2009 City of Lafayette Parks & Recreation Facilities Master Plan (PRFMP) as well as ongoing conversations between the Parks, Trails & Recreation Commission and local sports groups. 1

2 Lafayette Parks & Recreation Facilities Master Plan The primary objective of the PRFMP public participation process was to obtain ideas and concerns from all interested parties regarding new park land and recreation facilities acquisition/development in the City. There was an extensive outreach effort by the PTR Commission and Parks Department to gauge public opinion. Throughout the public participation process all input was carefully documented, analyzed, and considered by the PTR Commission, with the objective of accurately reflecting public opinion in the Parks & Recreation Facilities Master Plan. The public participation process included: An initial public workshop with the PTR Commission in 2007; Published notices in the Vistas City Newsletter, the Lafayette Recreation Guide; the City s website; and in local newspapers inviting the public to provide input; An on-line/write-in survey giving Lafayette residents an opportunity to submit their recreation facility preferences; and Numerous presentations by PTR Commissioners to local neighborhood groups and organizations in conjunction with the survey. Summary of Survey Responses: 343 surveys were received, with 247 completed on-line and 96 filled in on paper. 91.7% said they would like the City of Lafayette to acquire more park and recreational facilities. When asked to rank a selection of five types of park and recreation facilities or indicate their own preference; sports fields were the strongest preference, followed by neighborhood parks, downtown parks, and a dog park. When asked if there were other desired park and/or recreational facilities 61% said yes and, as requested, wrote in their preferences. However, these preferences tended to support the prior basic choices and preferences, with highest support for various types of sports fields. Second highest was other types of outdoor recreation facilities, including basketball, tennis, and a skate park. Other significant write-in preferences included a dog park, play areas/facilities, trails, open space, and an outdoor theater/concert facility. Comments Made By Various Sports Groups on the Homes at Deer Hill Proposal In addition to the parks master planning process in 2009, over the past year the PTR Commission has solicited public input on the proposed recreational components of the Homes at Deer Hill project. At the June 11, 2014 PTR Meeting, sports groups were invited to provide comments on the multi-purpose sports field. Dean Hobson, representing Lamorinda Lacrosse, said their club currently serves 350 players in the broader Lamorinda community and added that lacrosse is the fastest growing sport in the country. They have players that feed all three Lamorinda high schools. They currently have 36% Lafayette players and would like to see the proposed field become a home field for their club if possible. Mr. Hobson said that Lamorinda Lacrosse is a 100% not for profit organization and is 100% impacted by field space. He was strongly in favor of including the proposed soccer field in the plan which could easily accommodate the dimensions of a lacrosse field. 2

3 Larry Finney, representing the Lamorinda Rugby Club, said their club serves the Lamorinda area and their distribution of players is about 30% Lafayette. Most of their field practice time has been at the Wilder Field in Orinda and they are excited about the opportunity to be able to use this field and share it with lacrosse and soccer on a regular basis. Mr. Finney added that the rugby club is a non-profit organization and without new facilities, they cannot grow the sport which is one of their main goals. They offer scholarships to about one-third of their kids. Joe Dougherty, representing LMYA, said the need for additional field space is vital, noting that: LMYA Lafayette Soccer is the largest user group with 1,500+ players: 52% being female. LMYA soccer is only able to provide 1 practice and 1 game a week. Regulation fields for older kids (Community and Upper Back Burton) are at/close to 100% use, and the season is restricted to about 12 weeks due to field availability, weather (rain), and amount of daylight. There is another 600+ Club soccer players (LMSC, CalMagic and Eclipse) who compete for field space in Lafayette and beyond in the Fall. Many of these teams want multiple practices and games. LMYA parents have consistently indicated they want more practice time for their kids. The Coed High School soccer program is excluded from using the Lafayette School District fields because of age and field size constraints. LMYA softball and T-ball currently do not have access to any city fields (450 Boys and Girls). Though the field is currently designed exclusively for soccer / lacrosse / and rugby, Lafayette Little League has appeared before the PTR Commission and requested that its players be allowed to use the facilities. In his testimony to the Commission, Lafayette Little League president Dan Ventrelle stated that there aren t enough facilities for baseball in Lafayette, and that the striping design for the Deer Hill field should incorporate a small baseball field for use in the springtime. Given the young age of the users, the field would not require a skinned (i.e., dirt) infield. Lafayette Little League has approximately 760 players between the ages of 5 and 14, all of whom are Lafayette residents. At a more recent PTR meeting on February 11, 2015, Christine Tanona, of BearLax Girls Lacrosse, expressed support of the athletic field. BearLax Girls Lacrosse services 360 girls from Lafayette and the surrounding communities. They would love to use the field as a home base so they are not constantly grappling for fields and are potentially willing to commit funds if it is approved. In addition, Lafayette School District is anticipating an increase in Kindergarten age children starting next year. They will be adding seven portable classrooms to their current sites. This will most likely increase the number of youth sports participants/teams as well, requiring even more incremental field space. An additional concern is that these portables are being placed on current open field space, reducing the available space for recreation activities. To summarize, at least since 2002, there has been a growing need for additional sports field access in Lafayette. Residents and sports groups have expressed a desire for the development of a sports field as the highest priority for the PTR Department. The growing popularity of sports 3

4 like lacrosse and rugby, in addition to the already popular soccer and baseball, places additional pressure on the already well-used city and school district fields. Are there alternative sports field sites within the City that would satisfy this need? PTR Commission s Search for Vacant Park Land As part of the park and recreation facilities master plan process, the PTR Commission investigated over 350 vacant land sites and developed a matrix and map to analyze whether a site had park potential. Through this process we confirmed there are very few park options, especially for community parks, in Lafayette. The four community park properties that turned up included the Deer Hill/Pleasant Hill Road Property, the flat parcel located on Moraga Road and Saint Mary s Road, the sloped parcel on Mt. Diablo Blvd across from Oakwood Athletic Club, and County Flood Control Property at Olympic and Pleasant Hill Road. Purchasing these properties for public parks has historically been either beyond the City s financial resources or politically infeasible. Recognizing the need to pursue other strategies, a Fields Task Force was jointly established in early 2013 by the Lafayette City Council and Lafayette School District Governing Board. The group met several times, conducted site visits, and interviewed experts to determine if there were opportunities to provide more full-sized field time for sports teams in Lafayette. Fields Task Force Findings The Task Force reviewed the field use calendars for all publicly owned fields in Lafayette and determined that, for times when fields are open and available for use, field time is effectively 100% booked. There is no excess public field capacity in Lafayette. As a result, certain travelling soccer, rugby, lacrosse, and baseball teams aren t able to either practice or play. So as to give fields rest and because they can be muddy in the winter, City-owned fields are closed for all of December and January, and school-owned fields are closed from December through February. In order to increase field capacity in Lafayette, the task force studied three options: 1. Add synthetic turf to existing natural turf fields, 2. Add lights to existing fields, and/or 3. Acquire land and construct new fields. While looking at adding synthetic turf to existing fields, the task force discovered that, absent lights, the marginal cost of converting a natural grass field to synthetic turf is about $1M with the primary marginal benefit occurring on weekends during the three winter months (when the fields would otherwise be closed due to rain). Regarding adding lights to existing fields; the task force found this option to be costly and unpopular with adjacent neighborhoods. The only full-sized field in Lafayette that the Task Force thought might be a candidate for new lights is the one located at the Lafayette Community Park. However, the Community Park Master Plan prohibits field lights or any other lighting that would 4

5 encourage night use. Amending the Master Plan would result in a long and probably contentious public hearing process. Regarding the acquisition of land to construct new fields, the Task Force studied eight sites to determine if they were large enough to accommodate a full-sized soccer field. The studies concluded that only two areas, Deer Hill Road and Leland Drive, had flat areas large enough to contain a full sized soccer field. To acquire and develop one or both of these properties was desirable but infeasible at the time. No other suitable properties were identified. Based on recent analyses of potential sites by both the PTR Commission and the 2013 Council/School District task force, there are very limited opportunities for development of additional future fields due to the lack of level sites of adequate size. As a result, the PTR Commission and Department view the sports field component in the Homes at Deer Hill project as the best opportunity for addressing this need in the foreseeable future. How will the sports field be managed? Sports Field Use Permits The new sports field, if built, would be scheduled the same as the other four city fields, with the exception that the artificial turf field could allow more access than similar grass fields during winter months. City fields are defined by city ordinance as fee facilities that require a permit. PTR staff determines field availability through a computer scheduling system and provides applicants with the pertinent forms. Rules are set by ordinance and made a part of the approved permit. All required paperwork and fees must be received no less than 30 days before the first use date. An approved permit will be issued upon receiving use fees and a completed application. Field use schedules are posted on site and permit holders are required to bring a copy of their permit in case proof is needed. Comparison to Lafayette Community Park The Lafayette Community Park currently provides one full-sized soccer field, one junior field, a tot lot, and a barbeque / picnic area. It thus serves as a good comparator for, and indicator of, the type of use that will likely occur at the proposed Deer Hill Park. The Community Park parking lot includes 75 standard spaces plus 4 unmarked spaces used along islands at ends of center aisle, and 5 disabled access spaces. Existing parking demand at the Lafayette Community Park parking lot reaches its peak on Saturdays during soccer season, when the number of cars parked ranges from 61 to 83 cars. Parking demand on typical weekdays are approximately 10 to 15 vehicles between 4:00 and 5:00 p.m., leaving substantial parking capacity available in the lot. Though the park typically has two games/practices running simultaneously, we have found the total of 84 spaces to be adequate for more than 95% of the games and practices. This compares 5

6 to the 78 spaces (70 standard spaces plus 8 disabled access spaces) proposed for Deer Hill, which will typically have one scheduled game at a time. What are the pros and cons of the Deer Hill field as it is currently designed? Pros: Efficient use of a limited resource (large, flat, open space) with rectangular focus field as primary design. Ease of use and conversion between several identified community-supported sports soccer, rugby, lacrosse, and baseball/softball. 1 Low terraced wall along long field edge is excellent for spectator and team seating that is currently unavailable at other Fields There is the ability to incorporate baseball/softball without hardscape requirements. The sports field location has excellent handicapped access 2 ; It appears to have adequate parking based on comparative use at Lafayette Community Park; It accommodates a drop-off area, restroom, and storage; The developer will provide all of the grading, pathways, and soft costs; Orientation of the field takes sun direction into account; For soccer and rugby, there is 20 feet around the edge of the field for people to view games and for teams to assemble; There is adequate room to organize equipment; The synthetic turf field will not require irrigation and it will allow sports groups the opportunity to play during wet weather conditions; 3 The design uses the western slope to create natural sloped stadium seating ; Though there are currently no plans to do so, the field anticipates, and is in an ideal location for, future joint use with high school sports teams and programs; The high school parking lot could provide overflow parking for soccer/lacrosse games; conversely, the Deer Hill parking lot could provide overflow parking for special events at the high school such as Back To School night or Swim Meets (when, under current conditions, parking swamps the adjacent neighborhoods); The parking lot could serve uses beyond the community park, with an appropriate management plan in place, i.e. students, parents, and teachers on weekday mornings and park users on weekday afternoons and weekends. Ball walls will be incorporated into the retaining wall which will add a new dimension to skill building; 1 Soccer, Rugby, and Lacrosse have the ability to use the same rectangular turf field space. Field lines are slightly different, with portable goal standards being switched for each sport. Possible use for several other sports too - flag/football, ultimate Frisbee, etc. 2 Lafayette Little League Challenger team prefers an even field surface, as several players are in wheelchairs or utilize crutches/braces to move around. 3 Rugby s primary season is during November thru February when natural grass fields are closed frequently due to wet and/or resting conditions. 6

7 There are only two adjacent neighbors Quigley/Page and Sienna Ranch both of whom have publicly stated their support for the park design. There is direct access off an arterial road as opposed to driving through neighborhoods. Cons: The parking is approximately 300 from and 40 elevation below the field; Parents may loiter in the turnaround for pick up and drop off requiring regular enforcement; Users may be tempted to park in the residential neighborhood instead of the parking lot; this can be controlled via permit parking and enforcement; Some may find the retaining walls necessary to create the flat area for the field unsightly. Staff is not experienced with artificial turf maintenance which requires specialized equipment and cleaning; Artificial turf can become uncomfortably hot during warm weather months requiring field to be closed or watered to cool down surface to acceptable level. Errant balls on east side of the field would go a long way down the hill requiring a sufficiently high fence along the eastern and a portion of the southern boundaries. Do the distance and elevation change between the parking and field pose issues for users? Many fields in Lafayette and surrounding communities require similar access. For example, the upper field at Lafayette Community Park is an 875 up-hill distance from the parking lot. In addition, many of the school sports fields (Burton Valley, Happy Valley) are located behind the school and require parking and walking some distance to access the field. The northern field at Wilder in Orinda is approximately 750 from the large parking lot with similar elevation change to that proposed at Deer Hill. Sports groups encounter this situation at many parks and adjust to these circumstances. Why does the Sports Field need to be full-sized? The City does an adequate job in providing sports fields for younger children, but it comes up short in providing facilities for older children and adults. The PTR Commission has heard from several groups who cannot play because there aren t enough full sized fields. A full-sized field will accommodate a wider range of sports and fulfill a primary goal of the Parks & Recreation Chapter of the General Plan that provides a policy framework through which we can continue to provide a diversity of recreation opportunities for our community. Conclusion Hopefully the questions posed by the Planning Commission have been addressed in this staff memo. The Parks Maintenance Supervisor and I will be available to answer additional and follow-up questions at the May 4, 2015 meeting. 7

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