Residents press Soda Springs council to sustain youth sports as recreation director departs

Residents and volunteer coaches told the Soda Springs City Council on multiple public-comment items that the city’s youth sports programs need active support and clearer organization after the recent departure of the recreation director.

The comments, delivered by parents, coaches and foundation members, detailed problems in scheduling, coach recruitment, facility access and a longstanding split between city-run recreation teams and independently organized “all-star” traveling teams. Speakers pressed the council for a plan to sustain spring leagues and summer programming, restore relationships with neighboring communities and secure more indoor and outdoor practice space.

The call to action came from Holly Smith, who identified herself as a member of a new Caribou County Youth Sports Foundation that she and other volunteers are forming to support local programs. “I just have some questions about what the expectations are of the program going forward,” Smith said, asking whether the city would hire a new recreation director and how volunteer groups could coordinate with city staff. She said the foundation plans to pursue grants and sponsor efforts to recruit coaches and maintain momentum for Spring sports.

Coaches and longtime volunteers described operational problems that have accumulated for years. Reed Herron, a volunteer coach, said the program has suffered from “lack of communication, lack of presence, lack of follow through” and from scheduling shortfalls that forced teams to travel to Pocatello for games. He recommended shorter recreation seasons, more inclusive play opportunities and a clearer separation between recreational play and competitive all-star travel teams so younger or less experienced players still get regular local play.

Aaron Bowman, who has coached for many years in Soda Springs, traced the current split back more than a decade to a decision by the city to stop sponsoring or coordinating all-star teams. That change, he said, led some coaches and parents to organize independently, and the resulting fragmentation has reduced local participation and cohesion. He said previous efforts to ballot all-star coaches and to limit city support for nonparticipating traveling teams created resentment that contributed to the split.

Several speakers suggested practical steps. Ideas included: inviting high school and middle school coaches to future planning meetings so school teams and city recreation can coordinate schedules; using a volunteer foundation to recruit coaches and raise sponsorships; shortening rec seasons (four to six weeks) with clear playing-time expectations; running local clinics and shared scrimmages with traveling teams to integrate players rather than treat them as competitors; and pursuing a community recreation center to increase available gym and field space.

Council members acknowledged the concerns, thanked the volunteers for their work and said they would continue to include community representatives in follow-up meetings. The council invited interested citizens and coaches to attend a future working session and encouraged the new foundation to present a plan showing how it would support city-run programs and cooperate with schools and neighboring towns.

The discussion did not include formal council action to change staffing, budgets or policy; instead, several council members asked staff to continue coordinating meetings with community groups and school coaches. The public comments section ended with multiple volunteers offering to serve on committees and help recruit coaches.

Community leaders said they will return to council with more detailed proposals, grant search results and suggestions for a short-term volunteer-managed plan while the city considers a permanent recreation staffing solution.