Hilliard leaders mulling when and how to retake control and maintenance of city-owned athletics fields
After two decades of outsourcing control and maintenance of the city-owned soccer fields at HOSA Park, adjacent to Roger A. Reynolds Municipal Park, Hilliard is poised to retake responsibilities for its fields.
But when and how remain in question.
The Hilliard Ohio Soccer Association, known locally as HOSA, has leased the soccer fields since 2000. In accordance with its lease, which expires in May 2023, HOSA has the first priority for scheduling use of the fields for players in its program in exchange for maintaining the fields on city-owned land, said Ed Merritt, director of the Hilliard Recreation and Parks Department.
But Merritt recommended to Hilliard City Council on Jan. 24 that it extend the city’s lease with HOSA until May 2024, at which time the parks and recreation department also would begin to run the fields at the new Hilliard Recreation and Wellness Campus.
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The campus is expected to be complete by 2024, according to David Ball, Hilliard's director of community relations.
Merritt said staff members preferred to wait until 2024 to allow the city time not only to plan the design and construction of new athletics fields but also to establish policy and procedure for scheduling, staffing and the maintenance of all the fields.
City leaders plan to look at how other municipalities maintain an inventory of fields, as well as collaborate with third parties, Merritt said.
"We have maintenance plans from other municipalities around central Ohio we will be using to identify best practices," he said. "In addition, we will be working with EDGE and OSPORTS to develop a maintenance plan for the new property, both for the grass fields and the turf fields."
Maintenance will include routine activity, such as mowing and clearing litter, but also seasonal irrigation practices and "resting" grass fields, Merritt said.
There is no timeline for the planning process, according to Ball.
"That schedule will be created over the next several months," Ball said.
The HOSA complex has about 20 fields, depending on how they are laid out, and will remain active until the city competes building the new fields on the recreation and wellness campus, he said. After that, the HOSA fields would be repurposed, with a portion being used for parking and another portion as green space or trails, Merritt said.
However, although a precise number of fields at the recreation and wellness campus has not been determined, conceptual plans show about 20% more space for rectangular fields than at the HOSA complex, according to Ball.
"But until we go through the formal design process, we won't know for sure how much more space we will have," Ball said.
The city anticipates the gain in the field space will create more capacity for use because some of the fields will have artificial turf and a lighting system will allow for night games, he said.
Field-use capacity is one reason Hilliard leaders advanced Issue 22 on the November ballot. Issue 22 was a 0.5-percentage-point income-tax increase effective Jan. 1 that will fund the construction of the new recreation and wellness campus, including a community center and the athletics fields, at Cosgray and Scioto Darby roads.
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Since HOSA entered into a lease with the city, it has expanded to include seven programs, including LFC United, said Jay Dearth, director of HOSA.
Other soccer clubs, such as the Northwest Football Club, Football Club 42 and Olimpia Soccer USA, play at other locations in and around Hilliard, Merritt said.
Dearth told council members that HOSA supported the proposal of city staff.
When asked about the timing of the transition, Dearth told council member Omar Tarazi that HOSA would prefer to maintain scheduling control until the new fields are open at the recreation and wellness campus.
However, council member Les Carrier wants the city to take over sooner and also lobbied for the use of pocket parks for play until the new fields are constructed.
“I’m putting the pressure on to move the needle on this sooner,” Carrier said. “We didn’t go to the community (and ask for passage of Issue 22) so we could wait for two years.”
City Manager Michelle Crandall said the city wasn’t “pushing off” what Issue 22 promised voters but rather taking the time required to plan a quality campus.
In addition, Merritt said pocket parks are not ideal for playing fields because of the lack of parking and the probability that residents in some neighborhoods might not welcome the activities.
Carrier also suggested a 20% increase in playing fields might not be sufficient.
But council member Cynthia Vermillion pointed to a citizen survey conducted during the Issue 22 campaign that indicated residents desired walking trails more than additional playing fields.
"Perhaps the community doesn't view (playing fields) as such a priority as you," Vermillion said to Carrier.
Council President Andy Teater although “significant progress” had been made, council members were not ready to take action on the staff recommendation Jan. 24. He asked for discussion to continue at the next council-of-the-whole meeting Feb. 14 at the Hilliard Municipal Building, 3800 Municipal Way.
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This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: Hilliard leaders mulling when and how to retake control and maintenance of city-owned athletics fields
