Residents weigh in on fields dispute

The Scott City Council might make a decision as soon as Monday on the fate of the city's relationship with the Youth League.

After a special meeting, the eight-member council has plenty of information and opinions to comb through before making that decision.

The council met in special session Monday night to discuss a dispute over the Scott City Youth League -- a not-for-profit organization that administers the city's summer baseball and softball programs -- and its lease with the city. The lease allows the league to use the city's fields and facilities at Big Buck Park for its games.

The meeting followed a meeting by the city's park board last month, in which that board voted to terminate the city's lease with the youth league. However, the city council has the final say.

About 50 community members showed up for Monday's meeting. They gave varying viewpoints about complaints with the way the 2007 season was run, support for the youth league and suggestions on how operations might be improved in the future.

The park board voted to terminate the lease on the grounds of several complaints, most notably a lack of staffing in the concession stands and poor care of the park restrooms. Other complaints aired Monday night centered on a lack of communication between parents and youth league leadership and a feeling the youth league was being run in a dictatorial fashion by president LeAnn Wilthong, also a city council member.

Youth league supporters admitted there were some problems this season, but said the complaints were exaggerated and may have been influenced by personality conflicts

And those complaints never made their way to youth league leadership, instead going only to the park board, said youth league vice president Scott Raines.

"These problems were never addressed with the youth league," Raines said, adding those complaints were never broached with youth league leadership by the park board.

Park board president Rob Short agreed there could have been more communication between the two entities.

But before the city council makes a decision, Mayor Tim Porch has asked the park board to clarify its position: whether it wants to totally dissolve the city's relationship with the youth league or to terminate the current contract -- in place since the league's formation in 2000 -- and renegotiate.

Porch asked the park board for clarification after one board member, Ron Pratt, said his understanding of the board's vote was not necessarily to terminate the relationship.

"This vote was not one against the youth league," Pratt said.

Park board member Debbie Reddick laid out possible scenarios for the board taking over youth baseball and softball. The board would hire a league manager, but a committee made up of parents would still be in charge of many of the details of league administration, she said.

One possible solution, said Pratt, might be the parks department taking over the concession stands and the restroom facilities.

"Go back, search your soul and decide what you want to do with this," Porch said to the park board members, adding that he and the city council have confidence in their decisions.

The council's next meeting will be at 7 p.m. Monday.

msanders@semissourian.com

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