Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Council funds Imperial Beach Sports Park shortfall

"That is still less financial impact than when the city was running it."

The Imperial Beach Sports Park was awarded $45,000 to cover a budget shortfall Wednesday night (November 16) by city-council members who said they were pleased with efforts to offer more to the community.

It was a significantly different tone than in years past, when the sports park was a difficult subject for the community, vendors, and the past city council, which struggled to find ways to keep it open and running.

"Three years ago, the Boys and Girls Club took it over from the city and we hoped to be revenue neutral," said assistant city manager Ed Vea. "That is still less financial impact than when the city was running it."

Sponsored
Sponsored

The sports park is home to a skate park, a recreation center, and ball fields for a number of leagues and their teams. In 2014, the Boys and Girls Club of South County won the contract to run the recreation center and programs, following a contentious fight between residents who use the amenities and a city council that was in talks with the YMCA to run the park because the city can't afford to provide full financial support.

The Y ultimately withdrew its proposal, and the Boys and Girls Club began running the park. The city council approved an annual payment of $60,000 for electricity and other utilities.

In 2015, the club had a $50,000 shortfall, which the city also covered. Bowe Fertig, a former TV sports reporter who now runs programs, said that the club has added new programs and boosted participation in every area.

This summer, the club had its first weeklong sports camps, and participants went from 10 the first week to 30 during the last week — all by word-of-mouth.

The club offers everything from assistance with homework to zumba, he said, and the attendance numbers keep climbing. The club has just launched a teen night and is running tai chi classes.

"We want to be that one-stop shop for people to come in and do something worthwhile," Fertig said. "We now service 120 people a day — 60 to 70 indoors and 50 to 60 at the skate park." The softball leagues that use the fields are also growing — one coach for the adult league said the problem for them is that there are too many teams. "We ran out of nights," he said.

While councilmembers would like to see the sports park pay its own way, they made it clear that they appreciate the growth and new ideas coming forward.

"It has been an uphill battle," said councilwoman Lorie Bragg. "The numbers show we're winning the battle."

The city has just approved a grant application that is being submitted to California State Parks for about $770,000 for ball-field improvements.

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Big swordfish, big marlin, and big money

Trout opener at Santee Lakes

The Imperial Beach Sports Park was awarded $45,000 to cover a budget shortfall Wednesday night (November 16) by city-council members who said they were pleased with efforts to offer more to the community.

It was a significantly different tone than in years past, when the sports park was a difficult subject for the community, vendors, and the past city council, which struggled to find ways to keep it open and running.

"Three years ago, the Boys and Girls Club took it over from the city and we hoped to be revenue neutral," said assistant city manager Ed Vea. "That is still less financial impact than when the city was running it."

Sponsored
Sponsored

The sports park is home to a skate park, a recreation center, and ball fields for a number of leagues and their teams. In 2014, the Boys and Girls Club of South County won the contract to run the recreation center and programs, following a contentious fight between residents who use the amenities and a city council that was in talks with the YMCA to run the park because the city can't afford to provide full financial support.

The Y ultimately withdrew its proposal, and the Boys and Girls Club began running the park. The city council approved an annual payment of $60,000 for electricity and other utilities.

In 2015, the club had a $50,000 shortfall, which the city also covered. Bowe Fertig, a former TV sports reporter who now runs programs, said that the club has added new programs and boosted participation in every area.

This summer, the club had its first weeklong sports camps, and participants went from 10 the first week to 30 during the last week — all by word-of-mouth.

The club offers everything from assistance with homework to zumba, he said, and the attendance numbers keep climbing. The club has just launched a teen night and is running tai chi classes.

"We want to be that one-stop shop for people to come in and do something worthwhile," Fertig said. "We now service 120 people a day — 60 to 70 indoors and 50 to 60 at the skate park." The softball leagues that use the fields are also growing — one coach for the adult league said the problem for them is that there are too many teams. "We ran out of nights," he said.

While councilmembers would like to see the sports park pay its own way, they made it clear that they appreciate the growth and new ideas coming forward.

"It has been an uphill battle," said councilwoman Lorie Bragg. "The numbers show we're winning the battle."

The city has just approved a grant application that is being submitted to California State Parks for about $770,000 for ball-field improvements.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Gonzo Report: Three nights of Mission Bayfest bring bliss

“This is a top-notch production.”
Next Article

Two poems by Marvin Bell

“To Dorothy” and “The Self and the Mulberry”
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader