“The battle is over between the California Youth Soccer League and the Boy Scouts over the six soccer fields at Carr Intermediate – just before the season is to begin. The California League will use the fields on Saturday, and the Boy Scouts will play there on Sunday,” according to the O.C. Register.
State Senator Lou Correa proved once more that he is a man of the people by flying down from Sacramento to be at the meeting between SAUSD officials and the two competing soccer leagues.
The SAUSD’s initial decision to allow the Boy Scouts to use the fields at Carr and to simply boot the much larger California Youth Soccer League never made any sense. I am glad their mistake was rectified, at least partially.
This entire case simply underscores what a problem we have in Santa Ana with insufficient open space. Twenty years of mismanagement has put our city in a real bind. When was the last time our city officials fought to build a park instead of falling over themselves to welcome developers of luxury properties that few if any local residents can afford?
The same problem is evident in our lack of public libraries. Perhaps this year folks will finally vote for change on our City Council…and our School Board too! We deserve better leadership in Santa Ana.
The ‘clowncil’ would never fight to build additional parks..let alone libraries…if there isn’t any kind of kickback to them for their coffers..
While Art is looking at this issue as a city council candidate for Ward 3, this was actually an issue spawned by the incompetence of SAUSD. More specifically the problem was caused by the incompetence of SAUSD Risk Manager Camille Boden.
For whatever reason Boden was also put in charge of “civic center” use of the school facilities by the community. Bodens past history of repeated lawsuits for workman compensation cases and hundreds of thousands of dollars of legal fees is well known.
In the case of the soccer fields, Boden, in an earlier Register article, reportedly promised the fledgling Boy Scout league use of the Carr fields without due regard of the much larger Cal league.
The fact that Boden could not resolve the issue she created and required the assistance from a state senator serves further to prove that SAUSD refuses to acknowledge some of the dead administrative weight dragging them down. Boden is among highest on that list.
Art maybe looking at a lack of parks and other city mismanagement, but lets put the blame on this problem where it squarely belonged. It belonged to SAUSD and Camille Boden.
Art, I’m glad a compromise was made.
I’m hopeful that your campaign for city council will call for the need for additonal park space.
I would really like you and Janet to use your combined talents and buy Willowick golf course from cash strapped Garden Grove and transform it into a mixed sports use county facility, with the remaning 9 holed golf course, indoor and outdoor soccer parks, and other sport venues.
Also, I really think you might be missing the fact that with the Boy scouts assistance it allowed for CYSL soccer to expand its membership.
It was decided that because of the mismangement of the league that Boy scouts wanted to move on.
As someone that knows the cost of soccer uniforms and equipment, let me tell you it will be hard for any league to compete with the Boys Scout program at the same time provide the same services.
However now, parents have choices.
In the Boy scout program,$20 for registration, uniform and play. That’s amazingly cheap!
Under Boden’s watch the SAUSD fields finally have grass, trash is at a minimum, permits are monitored, and fees are actually going back into maintenance of the fields.
I hope that means that there will be some maintenance at the now shared MacArthur field. It has been nothing but a dustbowl this past year. Unfortunately, there never seems to be an acceptable time to maintain or water it since it is used daily for both PE and weekend soccer. Maybe the soccer teams will be able to get something done when they realize that they will be practicing on dirt and not grass.
Nobody.
Really? Under Bodens watch? What watch? If she had handled this little issue right a state senator wouldn’t have been involved. The last time I checked most of the grass fields look awful, as Anon teacher implies above at McArthur.
The actual soccer season hasn’t even started yet so how can you say the trash is at a minimum or that permits are monitored? Now go tell your boss you stood up for her and ignore the facts.
A Risk Management Manager oversees the maintenance of SAUSD school fields? Crazy man.
Isn’t this the chica that wanted to obliterate the cat population at the district site last year?
Anon #7
You got that right. The district used to have a “civic center” department to handle all the field and building uses. I suppose the cuts wiped out that department so they could enlarge someone elses office. It appears they handed the duties over to Risk Manager Boden.
Possibly they felt she had too much time on her hands when she came up with cat elimination at the district office.
However it went, her first mandate in charge of the field rentals was to stomp on the soccer league that had been using the fields for well over 15 years.
If I were the Cal league, I’d be angry too. Obviously the district had enough field space to settle the issue but Boden didn’t have the common sense to work it out without help from the state senator.
I wonder if the whole district doesn’t need help from the state such as a takeover.
Why are people missing the part that the scouting program has been associated with youth soccer in Santa Ana for over 15 years?
Everybody says that it was the leagues players but if they were also in the scouting program in these years and the scouts subsidized the league why is the scouts considered a newcomer.
The cal league and the scouts have been around for awhile and implying that one has history and the other doesnot is not too honest.
Jose,
What you say is apparently true. The point is that SAUSD just completely mishandled the whole issue, which seems to be S.O.P. for that administration.
Since Carr is considered primo real estate by the soccer leagues, fair use was a logical conclusion that could not be rendered by the notably inept Camille Boden without help from a state senator.
I too am happy the boy scouts were able to get some time at Carr, but with apparent availability of other school fields, you have to ask yourself if this issue really had to get to the point of making press news. One wonders if Boden, as Risk Manager, is also as inept at handling workman compensation cases of district employees.
Jose –
You’re the one missing the point – SAUSD’s ineptness made this situation worse.
One blogger asks the question if this matter really had to go to press. This incident reminds me of the Washington teachers that went to SAUSD administrators with concerns about falsifying attendance records. Apparently the Superintendent and SAUSD admins did not heed the concerns of these brave teachers and ignored their concerns. It was only when the teachers went to the press that the light was shone brightly on the district’s attempt to make money off our students by cooking the attendance books.
Over and over again, the Superintendent demonstrates there is no leadership at the helm.
Golly gee, all I remember from the attendance double-dipping fiasco is the Super’s explanation — the paperwork is tedious and sometimes staffers don’t fully understand guidelines to submit.
#11
I don’t have the time to check the History of this issue on this site but correct me if I’m wrong but wasn’t the accounting irregularities a situation that was happened year after year and it was after the teachers were getting shafted in their pay that these “brave” teachers decided to go public.
I agree with you though, I hold the whole public educational institution in Santa Ana in very low regard,that includes administration and teachers.
As our next President says failing public schools in areas serving the Hispanic communities is a civil rights issue.
Of course,most people understand the hypocrisy that public school teachers don’t send their kids to these low achieving public schools and local politicians get their kids in the charter public schools while they expect jose and Maria to send their kids to overcrowded, low expectation day care centers.
It is sad that we continue to have another generation of Hispanic kids get a substandard education while others move ahead. We allow this to happen because paying an educator or administrator is more important than giving children a decent education.
I think everyone is missing the point.
Why are inept people…… (who have authority in the SAUSD to bring it down as they always have) given more responsibility instead of a boot out the door?
Why? Why? Why?