DeCinzo made my day—in fact, my year—with his political satire cartoon on West Valley-Mission Community College Board of Trustee Member Jeff Schwartz (Oct. 4), who is no friend of the college.

Joel Pencer

Harleigh Drive

More sports fields
needed for youth

I am writing to express our strong sentiments regarding the need for more and improved field conditions in the city of Saratoga. This request is being made in order to ask for the city's support for the ever growing demand for field space across multiple sports including lacrosse (the fastest growing youth sport in California), soccer, football, etc. In this day and age, the youth enjoyment, development and sense of community that comes from playing recreational or competitive sports is virtually unmatched and is an essential outlet for our young people.

The game of lacrosse and the growing importance it is playing in our community of Saratoga, the Bay Area, the state and at a national level is something that we need to pay attention to and figure out how we can accommodate the demand for quality field space. As you are no doubt aware, this demand is not only coming from lacrosse, but also from soccer, baseball, softball and football—field requirements that can and must be shared.

Our middle child has been a part of the West Valley Redhawks club since inception. The Redhawks Lacrosse Club has grown from two to six teams in the past three years and the club needs the support of the city for the development and maintenance of acceptable field facilities.

Lacrosse is a fantastic game for both boys and girls and is growing in popularity on the West Coast, at the middle school, high school and college levels. This interest is also being further spurred along by the success of our own San Jose Stealth at the professional level.

My wife and I have two other children who are actively involved with soccer in our community. As you may be aware, the field requirements for soccer, lacrosse and football are interchangeable and, unfortunately, are also in short supply.

Community-based sports programs are a fantastic outlet for our youth and as such we look to the city of Saratoga for its leadership and influence in trying to improve the number and quality of available fields.

Tom Pridham

Saratoga

Clarifying the need
for 'flat grass'

Here are some key clarifications regarding the need for and the benefits of "flat grass" in Saratoga.

The individuals, who suggest working closer with the school districts, should know that there already has been and continues to be great collaboration with the Saratoga Union School District, user groups and the city staff. All local school fields are being used as much as is reasonable. This is true for essentially all safe, accessible and appropriate field space in the city. More space is needed for our kids and families.

Christa McAuliffe School is already being utilized by Saratoga players through collaboration with other user groups and the Cupertino Union School District; therefore, it is not an additional field.

Flat grass is the most flexible and inclusive design, with the lowest cost per user for parks. Specialty parks restrict usage and incur higher costs per user. With the proper installation of flat grass, annual maintenance costs are kept low and are further reduced by fees from user groups.

Flat grass meets the critical need for more open space, which should be available for use by all residents for many purposes.

Flat grass eliminates the need for costly redesign as needs and desires change in Saratoga.

Organized sports should not be confused with organized crime. The user groups are you and me and other moms and dads and their children, participating in a non-profit organization that provides opportunities for youth development, healthy lifestyles and fun family time together.

I encourage the city council to have the vision to utilize policy to manage park use, as is being successfully done today, and not use expensive design to limit the users and use of parks. I also thank them for their leadership in moving this opportunity forward.

Mark Linsky

Barksdale Court

Questioning soccer
sign-up numbers

The subject of soccer at Kevin Moran Park brings up a most important question that our council should answer.

Per the presentation given by another public participant, Mary Robertson, please explain—if in 1995 AYSO sign-up was 1,030 players with 84 teams, and in 2005 AYSO sign-up per city report was indicated to be 1,100 with 110 teams, how does a growth of 70 players yield 26 additional teams?

Also, in 1999 the team participants were 1,190 with 93 teams. And in 2005 the participants were 1,100 with 110 teams. How does a decrease of 90 players yield and increase 17 teams?

Is this a need or a want? And whose want is it? How about reviewing the 2002 public survey? Basketball and tennis were on the top, with shaded picnic areas and more trees planted. Those was the result. Who represents the citizens that answer the city survey?

These things need to be explained to the entire city as this council moves forward in creating yet another permanent location for soccer.

What happens when the alternatives are solved, and you have destroyed this neighborhood. When Marshall Lane, Walden West, Westmont High School, Rolling Hills Middle School, Christy McAuliffe and Serbian Orthodox become available?

We all pay taxes to the schools that our children attend, even if they are in Cupertino or Campbell? Why can't we solve this problem without destroying what open space we have with trees that the whole community enjoys?

Sandy Cross

Sculley Avenue

CLARIFICATION

In the Oct. 5 issue of the Saratoga News, we published a cartoon in which Steven DeCinzo exaggerated one portion of what was reported in a news story about a private tennis academy operating on the tennis courts at West Valley College. We did not kill the cartoon because we saw it as political satire—an exaggerated spin on the news and not intended to be taken literally. We apologize if it was not clear that it was political satire. It was our cartoonist's irreverent spin on a news story; nothing more.