Soccer Games on School Site Get Official Kicking Around

Kids playing soccer on the school grounds on a sunny fall afternoon. What’s wrong with that? Well, in one North County community, it’s illegal.

“Incredible,� said Solana Beach schools Supt. Ray Edman. “But true.�

The schoolyard in question is the future Fairbanks Ranch elementary school to be built in 1991, or ’92 at the latest, depending upon Edman’s success at solving the bureaucratic maze that the state imposes on school districts.

The schoolyard is home to more than 200 soccer-crazy youngsters. Add to that gang their parents, their coaches and their fans, and there’s usually quite a crowd on the 9-acre site of the future school, at the corner of El Apajo and San Dieguito Road.

Jaguars and station wagons line the curb. Sounds of the competition echo from behind the shrubs that line the vacant lot. Good clean fun. But illegal.

Special Permit Needed

San Diego County lawyers told the Solana Beach school district in December that county zoning laws require the district to obtain a permit before any nonschool usage of the Fairbanks field can be allowed.

The cost of the permit, which probably would be granted, is a bit steep for the small elementary school district. Edman estimates that it would cost from $3,000 to $12,000, plus six months’ of effort, to obtain the required county document.

Ironically, once the school is built, the grounds will be open to the soccer players and any other group that meets the district’s criteria because school property is exempt from county zoning ordinances.

But that’s tomorrow, and this is today.

Board of Supervisors Chairman Susan Golding came to the rescue by suggesting a middle road--an amendment to the county’s zoning ordinance that would allow compatible activities on undeveloped school sites under the same rules that apply for schoolyard activities.

But, when the matter recently came before supervisors, San Dieguito Planning Group officials mounted a campaign against the proposal and convinced board members to send the matter back to the county Planning Commission for another look.

“We’ve been painted as the bad guys,� Al Frowiss, planning group chairman, said. “But this is a countywide issue,� he explained, “and it is not at all correct to bastardize the county zoning ordinance� just to allow a bunch of children to play ball on a Fairbanks Ranch site.

County planners concede that a change that would allow soccer on the Fairbanks field would also allow relatively unregulated activities on any other school site in unincorporated areas of the county.

Fee Waiver Suggested

Frowiss suggested that, instead of changing the zoning ordinance, the county waive the permit fee for the Solana Beach school district and grant the permit, with conditions to assure neighboring residents that the vacant lot won’t become a neighborhood nuisance.

Edman said the school district has rules for use of school properties, and the rules will be followed if the county allows the district to supervise the activities.

Hours of operation, types of activities, adult supervision and other requirements will be met, Edman said, if the county will permit the school district to take charge of its Fairbanks property.

Also, Edman said, “we could charge fees for the use of the site, which would give us funds to keep the property free of litter and in shape.�

Attorney Paul Marks, a member of the San Dieguito Planning Group, questions whether the rules Edman plans to enforce are adequate because they contain no requirements for fencing or restrooms.

Marks informed the County Planning Department that “the existing soccer field on El Apajo in the Fairbanks Ranch area has been the subject of problems for neighbors because the children using the soccer fields have used their back yards as latrines.�

A Community Asset

Edman insists that the future school site is a community asset that should be used, legally, by area youngsters for such healthy, wholesome sports as soccer. Even rich kids need a place to play, he contends.

So, the Solana Beach school district is mounting a campaign to overwhelm the opposition: letters to county planning commissioners and county supervisors and a petition drive to obtain at least 1,000 signatures in favor of using the site as a soccer field. A sizable band of supporters is expected to attend the county planning commission when the issue is discussed Oct. 20.

But, while the planning group and school district spar over use of the vacant land, the soccer play continues in full swing, as it has for two seasons.

“We must do something about this situation,� Edman said. “We can’t continue to turn our backs against the use of the property. We need the authority to step in and control activities there.

“Otherwise, we are going to have to act to shut the soccer field down.�