MOMS, KIDS MARCH TO GET LARGER SOCCER FIELD VAL VERDE PARK PLAN REDRAWN.Byline: SUE DOYLE Staff Writer VAL VERDE Val Verde may mean:
n. An American mother living in the suburbs whose time is often spent transporting her children from one athletic activity or event to another. scorned. On Monday, a dozen mothers were on the warpath on a hostile expedition; hence, colloquially, about to attack a person or measure. See also: Warpath about a nonregulation-size soccer field planned for Val Verde Park -- too small, they said, for teen and adult teams. The moms carried signs in English and Spanish to protest plans for a 2,800-square-foot field that they said could be used only for peewee peewee: see flycatcher. leagues, whose players are far fewer than the 160 teens who play soccer. ``We want positive things here for our teens,'' said Maria Ramos, a mother of five boys who all play soccer. The protest left some county officials puzzled. The chunk of land set aside for soccer games was never large enough for a regulation-size field, said Bob Haueter, senior deputy to Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich Michael Dennis Antonovich (born 1939 in Los Angeles, California) is a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors representing the Fifth District, which covers northern Los Angeles County, the Antelope, Santa Clarita, Pasadena, and parts of the San Fernando and San . Haueter said that fact was previously communicated to residents who then voted for a smaller soccer field that could fit there, next to a flood plain and hillside. Residents on Monday said that vote had left them confused. But by midafternoon Monday, Haueter said that lines to the soccer field were redrawn to extend onto the softball softball, variant of baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Invented (1888) in Chicago as an indoor game, it was at various times called indoor baseball, mush ball, playground ball, kitten ball, and, because it was also played by women, ladies' field. Now the soccer field stands at 4,000 square feet, still about 1,400 square feet less than regulation size. But the new size works for the protesting moms who said that any extra space is helpful. ``It still won't be regulation size, but it's a heck of a lot better than it was before,'' said Val Verde resident Natalie Tate. Tate said now the parents will petition other soccer leagues to waive any requirement for a larger soccer field. A $2.8-million makeover of the 58-acre park is nearly complete. A new playground, tennis courts, ballfields and lights have been in the works at the park. sue.doyle(at)dailynews.com (661) 257-5254 CAPTION(S): Photo: (color) Parents and children carry protest signs Monday at Va l Verde Park over plans for a soccer field they called too small for teens and adults. John Lazar/Staff Photographer |
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