04 Oct PLAYS Initiative to Make WCCUSD Fields More Accessible to Youth Sports

People gathered Sept. 24 at Kennedy High for the announcement of a new initiative to make WCCUSD sports facilities cheaper and easier to rent. (Ana Tellez-Witrago / The CC Pulse)

By Ana Tellez-Witrago

A new initiative to promote youth sports participation by lowering the cost of leasing West Contra Costa Unified School District sports facilities was announced at a press conference Sept. 24 at the Kennedy High football field.

The West County Providing Local Access to Youth Sports initiative, made possible through a collaboration between Contra Costa County, the school district and local nonprofits, addresses the financial barriers associated with sports facility rentals.

These costs have been a hurdle for many nonprofit sports organizations. By using $400,000 in county health funds each year to reduce rental costs by approximately 75%, PLAYS aims to make the district’s indoor and outdoor sports facilities more affordable and accessible for youth sports.

“This is a health issue,” said Supervisor John Gioia. “The more we can make our school fields accessible to the community, the healthier young people will be.”

Gioia helped secure $400,000 in annual ongoing funds for PLAYS, which will pay for the cost of the school district’s sports facilities maintenance staff and fund a coordinating position to help implement the program by working with the school district and nonprofit sports leagues to help them navigate the application and reservation process.

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Local youth soccer clubs, among other sports groups, have been vocal advocates for better access to sports fields. Last August, they presented their concerns to the school board, namely the increase in cost and issues with the online reservation platform.

The Richmond Soccer Coordination Center, an advocacy group for youth soccer, found that the total costs of reserving a field for a Sunday game had increased nearly eightfold over the past decade, rising from $28.76 per hour in 2012 to $226.78 per hour in 2022. Janitorial and groundskeeping staff accounted for the majority of these direct costs.

Additionally, it identified problems with the field reservation system. The facilities’ availability was not accurate, and groups would have to call the schools to verify, which caused confusion.

Gioia expressed his support for the school district’s partnership to expand facility scheduling so that when the schools are not using them, the sports fields can be used by the community.

“This is important because our West County youth have higher rates of obesity than other Contra Costa County youth,” Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Hurst said.

“Over the past decade, even before the pandemic, we saw a decrease in participation in youth sports. It has to do with cost and access,” said PLAYS program coordinator Samantha Torres.

Having that access can have major benefits.

“Access to youth sports is proven to decrease issues with mental health. We have higher motivation and higher rates of reported happiness. We also see the impacts on school with better focus, better sleep and reduced absenteeism,” Torres continued. “These are all things that are directly connected to participation in sports. Our kids deserve this. They deserve that access.”