December 11, 2003


Officials meet to discuss Sports Field Complex

By Kymberli W. Brady
Staff Writer

An estimated 3,200 children involved in sports continue to serve as the cornerstone for a proposed sports complex development on McKean Road, a facility complete with six soccer fields, four baseball fields and two softball fields that would promise to provide safe, available playing areas in an effort to meet Almaden’s growing demand. Although the need for the fields is not disputed, several residents in the immediate area are opposed to the project, having expressed concerns with regard to traffic and water issues that have prompted a revamping of the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) before it can proceed.

On Dec. 8, board members with the Almaden Youth Association, Almaden Little League, Almaden Valley Soccer League, and Almaden Valley Girls Softball met with Vice Mayor Pat Dando and city officials to discuss the ongoing process and potential roadblocks that could affect the project, along with possible solutions that might keep it on track.

“We’ve been working on this for over ten years,” said Dan Smyth. “We wanted to give everyone an opportunity to let our teammates with the city show where we are in our perspective and answer questions.”
Vice Mayor Pat Dando admitted to having been discouraged at times, but remains committed to the project, the lengthiest and most trying of her political career. “My children played sports a number of years ago and they were in bad shape then,” she said. “There isn’t anything more important to me in my last year of office than making sure this becomes a reality.”

With the City Council’s passing of the amendment to the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) last week, officials are moving forward with the new EIR, due out in the fall of next year. The project now lies with the City Planning and Legal Departments, who have hired RBF Consultants and their expertise with preparing an adequate EIR document.

Now the study process ensues. Wells are being drilled on the property in an effort to investigate possible solutions to the water issues raised and to perform objective analysis that will hopefully answer questions surrounding potential impacts. According to Haas, the process involves substantial pumping at the site, along with irrigation plans and is expected to be completed next summer. Results will then be taken to the Planning Commission for the EIR and General Plan Amendment.

In so much as tapping into an existing pipeline on the site remains a possibility and although the water district remains in favor of the project, their first responsibility is in providing water countywide and they expressed concerns as it could lessen their ability to do so.

An additional segment of the ongoing water study centers on irrigating natural turf, where pesticides and fertilizers may play a significant role in water quality as runoff into the creek and storm drainage system could be impacted. “That is what has led to other alternatives such as artificial turf,” Haas explained. “As with many issues, when you mitigate, there’s a cost benefit analysis. Here, the cost of artificial turf is much higher to start with, but reduces impacts and reduces maintenance in the long haul. Somewhere there’s a return on investment.”

“This begins the process of what I call the analytical part of our work,” Haas added. “One of the issues raised in the initial comments was that we were not taking enough time to do some of this water analysis. The big question that requires time is the issue of water quality and water availability. What you get challenged on is either you forgot something or what you did wasn’t adequate. By going through this additional step, we will be covering those bases very well.”

Because of the amount of time for pubic review and filing, Haas hopes to finalize the EIR in September or October and have it ready to take to the Planning Commission in November, followed by the City Council in December.
Dando remained concerned with regard to the timeline imposed by the city and although she requested that the dates be moved up to accommodate any legal glitches that might occur in the interim, Haas reiterated the need to allow enough time for the studies. Part of the water quality analysis requires that they study a complete water cycle from October 1st to April 15th in order to encompass an entire data collection period. The compiled data will be put into the EIR document before public review.

“With respect to this particular project, the substantial comments we received during the first draft period really did provide us an insight into what challenges and weaknesses might be in that document,” admitted Haas. “In a way, it served to give us a jump on the types of things we really need to focus on.”

Another concern lies with increased traffic probability as well as pedestrian and biker safety. Potential solutions were raised and included the option of having players sign waivers promising not to walk or ride their bikes to the fields under penalty of expulsion from the leagues. “The irony here is that kids don’t even ride their bikes to Bret Harte,” said Pat McCormick. “Why are they going to ride their bikes out there?”

Additionally, a trail down the east side of the valley was suggested as an alternate bike route, under the condition that a bridge be constructed enabling riders to cross back over the creek to McKean. “If AYA wants to take on that project, I agree that would be a delightful ride,” said Dando. “But it will take a lot of time and a lot of money.”
The California Environmental Quality act requires that alternatives be presented that might reduce the impact of mitigating issues. The law only requires that a ‘reasonable’ number of alternatives be presented and reducing the number of fields or looking at an alternative site was among those discussed. Revamping existing fields was mentioned as well, but in addition to not instead of the proposed complex.

Once completed, the EIR will go to the Planning Commission, who will take action on the report. If there are no challenges at that point, it will be deemed final. If there are issues that cannot be mitigated, SEQUA allows for the Council to adopt statements of overriding consideration that will allow the project to proceed forward anyway.
“It is not uncommon to say that here are impacts and some of them cannot be mitigated to a level of insignificance,” said City Attorney Rick Doyle. “With regard to traffic, water or other issues, the Council can vote to override those issues and concerns.”

At that point, challenging parties, if any can file suit and a hearing would be scheduled within 6-10 months, further delaying the groundbreaking. Even if the courts rule in favor of the project, appeals could delay it another one to two years.

None-the-less, the opposition has drawn a fierce line in the sand – armed with strong resources and sufficient motivation, including a high profile law firm that stands ready to impede the success of the project.
“There is no compromise with them at this point,” Haas said. “I don’t think we have a negotiable project with this group.”

“We feel pretty confident that the level of detail we will go through in the second round is really going to make anyone who wants to challenge this document think twice about spending their money,” said Doyle.

Although estimated to cost a considerable amount of money, Dando admits to having saved over $800,000 during her eight years in office for the project. “I’m committed to working hard to make sure this happens,” she says. “I’m committed to it financially and committed to taking some of the hits from the community who might not believe it’s important. This is important work, not only because it’s a need for our community, but also for what it will mean for our children and grandchildren. It is a battle that we need to fight. I’m going to hold the residents who expressed concerns at their word,” she added. “My hope is that at the end of the day, it doesn’t end up being a case of ‘not in my backyard.’”

Not withstanding further legal challenges, board members and city officials remain optimistic as they look forward to breaking ground sometime next year.