VETERANS PARK
AND
ATHLETIC COMPLEX
NEEDS ASSESSMENT
February, 2002
Table of Contents
Methodology 1
Requirements 2
Recommendations 3
Non-Athletic Park Needs 4
Phasing Recommendations 5
Table I – Adult Softball 6
Table II – Girls Fastpitch Softball 7
Table III – Adult Soccer 8
Table IV – Youth Soccer 9
Phases of Development Site Plan …10
Phase I Map 11
Phase II Map 12
Phase II Map 13
Phase IV Map 14
2
Veterans Park & Athletic Complex Needs Assessment
VETERANS PARK AND ATHLETIC COMPLEX
NEEDS ASSESSMENT
February 2002
In the 1998 Capital Improvement Project Bond election, funds were provided for the initial development of the Veterans Park and Athletic Complex. (VPAC) In November of 2001, City Council awarded a contract for the phase I development which includes the construction of six adult soccer fields, two of which are lighted, and two lighted adult softball fields. This report is intended to help guide the future phases of development for the Veterans Park and Athletic Complex. This includes recommendations on the type and number of additional facilities to be built and the order in which they should be developed.
Methodology
In order to evaluate the future needs of VPAC properly, it is necessary to determine how many users there will be. Normally, this would include evaluation of past participation history, growth trends and future population growth estimates. In this instance, however, we did not have access to all of the variables for each of the activities.
In the case of youth soccer, the Department contacted the College Station Soccer Club and received a seven-year registration history. The soccer club did not provide a forecast of future growth, however. In this instance, staff reviewed the growth history and discovered that the youth soccer program had growth ranging between 1% and 20% annually. Additionally, in a conversation with Mitchell Smith, President of the Brazos Valley Youth Soccer Association, it was stated that soccer is growing at an average of 10% annually, nationwide. According to the Development Services Department, the population in College Station is expected to grow at a rate of 3% per year for the next ten years. The College Station Independent School District is projecting a 3% growth rate for the student population[1]. Given these factors, the Department estimated that soccer would continue to grow at a rate of 10% per year for the next 5 years. However, it is believed that the City’s slower growth rate would not support this rate of growth for the full ten years. Therefore, the growth rate is estimated at 5% annually for years 6-10.
With Adult Soccer, no trend data was available after numerous requests were made of the Brazos Valley Soccer Association. Therefore, growth for Adult soccer was estimated at 3% annually, in keeping pace with the City’s growth projections. Likewise, the girls fastpitch softball program, while increasing in popularity and experiencing some growth, does not have enough history to adequately estimate a trend. The best estimate is that the program will grow at the same rate as the general City population, 3 percent.
Adult softball has presented somewhat of challenge in estimating growth. Until 2000, the program was operating above capacity and turning teams away. In 2000 however, the City began charging an additional $75 per team Facility Replacement Fee. When this fee took effect, participation dropped for the first time in eleven years. Participation dropped again in 2001. Some of the teams that stopped participating in the College Station program started to play in the City of Bryan’s program. However, that program has since reached capacity. It is the Department’s estimate that the downward trend in adult softball will end this year and the program will begin to recover its participation base. Because the program was once at capacity and lost participation due to factors other than population saturation, it is estimated that the program will, for at least the first 5 years, grow at a rate above the City’s estimated 3%. This is especially true given the fact that the program had not only reached its maximum participation on the current complex, but also the fact that the Department was turning away approximately 100 teams a year. Given these factors, it is estimated that the adult softball program will grow at a rate of 5% annually.
Requirements
Another factor to consider in determining the need for additional facilities at the Veterans Park and Athletic Complex is the capacity of the fields. This is the number of teams or individuals each field can support. In the case of the youth soccer fields, the College Station Soccer Club did not provide a number of teams or individuals that could use each field. Therefore, staff took the current registration number 1,551 and divided it by the current number of game fields, 11, to develop a ratio of 141 participants or 13 teams per field, at the current rate of usage. With the adult soccer program, they are currently playing with 21 teams on 3 fields.
In the case of adult softball, we have previously had 45 teams per field, per season, which includes the men's, women's and co-recreational programs. This is above our optimum level of 32 teams per field per season. This type of scheduling was required to accommodate the demand for adult softball on the fields currently available. Even with the decrease in participation due to the fee increase in 2000, we are still above our optimum field use limit. This requires some teams to begin games at 10:15 at night.
Another factor affecting the recommendation is the changes in the rules administered by the Amateur Softball Association, the national governing body for the softball programs. Those rules now require the adult men’s softball to be played on fields with a minimum distance to the outfield fences of 300 feet. The current fields at Central Park have a field depth of only 275 feet, and cannot be expanded. This severely limits the types of leagues the City can offer, even with local rule modifications. It also prevents the City from hosting adult men’s slow pitch tournaments, which can have a significant economic impact.
The girls’ fast-pitch softball program currently utilizes four fields located throughout the community. These include the two fields at Bee Creek Park, one at Lemontree Park and one at Luther Jones Park. Lemontree and Luther Jones are neighborhood parks that currently provide services, which are better, suited for community parks. Additionally, Luther Jones Park softball field is not lighted and has no parking or restrooms. There are also several competitive "traveling" teams that are organized in the area and utilize the College Station fields. These teams will also benefit from the conversion of the Central Park softball fields to a youth complex.
Recommendations
At this time, the Department is recommending that the first priority for development in Phase II of the Veterans Park and Athletic Complex be the completion of the five-field adult softball complex. This will include three lighted fields, concession area and restroom facilities. The recommendation also includes the expansion of the parking facilities adjacent to the softball complex. Currently, there are approximately 400 parking spaces being built in Phase I. By completing the additional parking there would be an increase of approximately 260 spaces.
There are several reasons for this recommendation for additional softball fields. First, the current adult softball complex at Central Park is over utilized. The maximum level of play on these fields in order to properly maintain them and not have games starting after 10pm is four games per night. Currently, there are five games a night scheduled on some fields. While this is possible, it is detrimental to the overall quality of the program.
At the current level of participation, we have an average of 35.33 teams per field per season, and optimal is 32 teams per field per season. This includes men, women and co-rec leagues. With the construction of the five-field complex, the average would be 28.27 teams per field per season based upon current registration levels. This would allow the program to grow through 2006 before we may have to limit registrations or play 5 games per field per night again. Additionally, as stated before, the field dimensions at Central Park are too small for regulation play.
The completion of the five-field adult softball complex would not only allow the City program to grow and develop, but would also increase the variety of tournaments that the City may host. Currently, the City can only host youth or Adult Fastpitch softball tournaments due to the existing field sizes. With the 315 foot fences planned for the Veterans Park and Athletic Complex softball fields, the City will be eligible to host all levels of adult slowpitch softball tournaments. As many as 100 teams participate in some of these tournaments.
Additionally, by moving the adult program to VPAC, the Department will be able to relocate the girls fastpitch program to Central Park. This will benefit the girls program in several ways. First, it will put the entire program at one complex, reducing the maintenance costs, a concern noted during the 2001 fee study. Secondly, it will reduce the travel for parents who have children playing at more than one facility and provide more facilities. Finally, by having all of the games at one facility, the participants would have a chance to see others play increasing the community atmosphere of the program. The fields at Lemon Tree and Luther Jones could be re-programmed to other uses with less impact on the residents of the neighborhoods.
As programs grow, the existing softball fields at Bee Creek Park can be used to handle any overflow. The Co-Recreational and Adult Fastpitch leagues could, if needed, play at Bee Creek. This Co-Recreational portion of the program can still play on fields with 275-foot fences. There are currently 50 teams per season. The Adult Fastpitch program, which currently only plays one season a year could play on the 250' field at Bee Creek Park. Finally, the youth program could still use the fields at Bee Creek if needed.
With regard to soccer fields, there may be a need for some additional fields, however, the exact number is hard to determine. This is because the wfields that are being built are full size adult fields. As such, these fields can be subdivided into a greater number of youth fields with the simple addition of marking paint and goals. The exact number of fields that can be marked will depend upon which size field is needed for that season. However, each adult field could be subdivided into at least two youth fields and give the City 12 new game fields for the youth. This would bring the total to 23 youth game fields, which fulfills the projected youth soccer field needs through 2010. One potential problem to that approach is the possibility that the parking and restrooms will be inadequate to support the number of users.
For the adult soccer program, teams are currently playing on 3 fields in the fall and 5 fields in the spring. The adult program also utilizes several fields in the City of Bryan. To develop the projections for future needs, we have applied the same 141 participants per field standard that we used with the youth program. This is reasonable given the fact that adult soccer averages 18-20 players per team and youth teams have a maximum of 11 players, resulting in fewer teams in the adult program trying to use the fields. Using these assumptions, the adult program can continue to play on the existing fields through 2010. Therefore, any new soccer field development could be delayed until after 2007 when the first six (6) fields will reach capacity.
Non-Athletic Park Needs
In addition to the athletic fields and parking, it is recommended to build the large picnic pavilion and playground area next to the original six soccer fields. With the increase in patrons comes an increase in the need for entertainment facilities for those not directly taking part in the athletic activities. Last year there were 340 pavilion rentals in College Station and 623 rentals in Bryan. A large pavilion would be a good addition to the Veterans Park and Athletic Complex. The construction of one and one-quarter mile of trail as additional amenity is also recommended. Additional space will be needed for the maintenance facility currently under construction in phase I. This space is needed to house the necessary equipment and personnel required to maintain the park facilities in accordance with approved standards.
Phasing Recommendations
The implementation of the master plan for Veterans Park and Athletic Complex is recognized as a long-term process. The magnitude of the overall project necessitates that a "phased" plan be developed. The proposed development has been divided into four distinct phases, which will occur over a multi year period. These phases are illustrated in the map included with this report.
Phase I development began construction in November 2001 and is scheduled for completion in the fall of 2002. The scope of the Phase I project includes the development of a six-field soccer complex with restrooms and parking facilities. Also, this phase includes two softball fields with parking, a small maintenance building and the main park road with an entrance on Harvey Road. The Brazos Valley Veterans Memorial will be constructed as a separate project in coordination with the Phase I park development. All utility, drainage and road improvements for the first phase are designed to support the future development of the park.