Costa Mesa seeks input on sports fields

Sports fields at four Costa Mesa schools have been targeted by the city for renovation and improvement, and the City Council wants residents to speak up and tell the city what they want to see done.

The council will decide Tuesday which local interest groups will be represented on a task force that will guide city planners in their efforts to rethink the use of fields at California Elementary School, TeWinkle Middle School, Costa Mesa High School and Davis Elementary School.

In addition to representatives from the City Council, the Parks and Recreation Commission, the Newport-Mesa Unified School District and the Youth Sports Council, the City Council will pick a group of nearby homeowners associations to each send a representative.

“We want to know their concerns — noise issues they have, traffic concerns they might have — so that staff can look at this from a logical basis,” said Public Services Director Peter Naghavi.

Many people who live around the parks and throughout the city have children who use the parks either as students or as members of youth soccer, football and baseball leagues. By getting parents’ input, the city prevents a situation where only one interest group’s needs are met, Naghavi said.

ALAN BLANK may be reached at (714) 966-4623 or at [email protected].