DATE: January 13, 2004
TO: Board of Supervisors
SUBJECT: Improving Memorial Field in La Mesa and Helping Kids Succeed in Spring Valley
SUMMARY:
Today's action will provide funding to allow the La Mesa National Little League to improve the existing baseball field at Memorial Field in La Mesa. It will also fund a permanent home for the REACH program in Spring Valley.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
Chairwoman Dianne Jacob:
- Find that the allocations for the Memorial Field and REACH projects are exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15301.
- Allocate $99,740 from the District Two Community Projects fund (Org. 0262) to the La Mesa National Little League to improve Memorial Field in La Mesa. Improvements may include: re-roofing dugouts and a snackbar; building a retaining wall and handicap-accessible restrooms; expanding the baseball field to regulation size; and making appropriate improvements to drainage and parking.
- Allocate $75,000 from the District Two Community Projects fund (Org. 0262) to the La Mesa Spring Valley School District to purchase a portable facility to permanently house a before- and after-school REACH program on the Spring Valley Middle School campus, as well as a truancy school program during school hours. The funding will also allow improvements to be made to the portable facility to make it handicap accessible.
- Authorize the Chief Financial Officer to execute a grant agreement with the organization in items 2 and 3 listed above, establishing terms for receipt of the funds described above.
- Find that all grant awards described above have a public purpose.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The fiscal impact associated with this action is $174,740. The funding source is District Two Community Projects funds for fiscal year 2003-04. This action will result in the addition of no staff years and no future costs.
BACKGROUND:
La Mesa Memorial Park holds many memories for East County residents. Built in 1953, generations of youngsters have played baseball on Memorial Field. But while La Mesa has grown and prospered, Memorial Field has aged, falling out of repair and out of compliance with regulation standards. Today's allocation of Community Projects funds will allow the La Mesa National Little League, in cooperation with the City of La Mesa and the La Mesa Senior Softball Association, to expand the field to regulation size, build handicap accessible bathrooms, and adjust the parking lot to accommodate the expanded field. Funding may also be used for making other renovations to the facility, such as re-roofing the dugouts and snack bar, and building a retaining wall.
Spring Valley Middle School has been the home of the REACH program (Recreation, Education, Athletic, Culture, and Healthy living), since 1997. The REACH program addresses a critical gap in resources for at-risk youth in the area, providing positive activities before and after school that encourage kids to set goals, contribute to their community, and achieve in school. The REACH program also gives working parents peace of mind that their children are safe and productive during the critical hours before and after school, when youth are most vulnerable to the influences of drugs, gangs, and violence.
For several years, the Spring Valley Youth and Families Coalition (SVY&FC) has operated the REACH program in Spring Valley out of a rented portable facility on the property of the Spring Valley Middle School. Today's action will provide funds to purchase the portable facility and make improvements needed to make it handicap-accessible. The purchase of the portable will allow the REACH program a permanent home. Further, the La Mesa-Spring Valley School District has agreed to pay the maintenance and utilities for the entire building, and plans are well underway already for the San Diego County Office of Education to operate a truancy program out of the facility during school hours.
By partnering with community groups and agencies such as school districts and cities to provide youth with the best opportunities possible, everyone wins, especially our children!
I urge your support.
Respectfully submitted,
DIANNE JACOB
Chairwoman, Second District