City officials are working on an action plan to address concerns raised by parents during a regular City Council meeting about the management of the Love-Hatbox Sports Complex.

About 10 people addressed the council Monday night about the sports complex, hoping to affect change.

Roy Tucker, interim city manager, forwarded the video recording of the council meeting to Jason Clement of Sports Facility Advisory (SFA), the group that manages the complex.

“They were very concerned about the issues that were raised, as are we,” Tucker said.

SFA representatives said they will visit Muskogee to inspect the facility and meet with the concerned residents. After that, they will formulate an action plan to rectify the issues and present it to the city.

“As one of the citizens addressed, this isn’t about only making money, it’s about operating a public facility,” Tucker said.

The public facility needs to be flexible and attractive to give visiting sports teams, as well as the home teams, a positive experience, he said. Several residents complained about mismanagement of scheduling, cleanliness of the facilities, concerns of disrepair and bathroom graffiti.

Tucker said he expects a report from SFA within two weeks, which will give the city a plan on which to act. Many of maintenance concerns can be handled in-house.

Billy Matson, the first resident who addressed the council Monday night, has been coaching in those fields for years. However, Matson said he will not likely return this season.

“We’ve got a lot at stake out there,” Matson said. “...we put a lot of time in those fields.”

Matson said he is confident their concerns have not “fallen on deaf ears.” It’s important for children to have good, safe and accessible facilities to practice. A concern raised by a fellow parent is that teams had limited access to the practice fields.

“I think it’s good that they will listen to us,” Matson said. “I do hope something will happen pretty quick since ball season is coming up.”

In an effort to better understand the issue, Ward IV Councilor Wayne Johnson converted his now defunct campaign website into a survey.

The survey, available to residents online, seeks to gather basic demographic information and asks respondents to rate various parts of the sports complex, such as the restrooms, scheduling, field condition and the concessions.

“That was just a tool I started as an independent councilman,” Johnson said. “Anytime you can get a broad spectrum of feedback, it’s a good, useful tool.”

Johnson said the survey is not a city tool. Johnson said he is seeking feedback as a councilor for insight into the community.

 

Source : muskogeephoenix.com

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