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Commission approves athletic field use policy amendments adding winter allocation, inclement-weather rules and Fair Play Act reporting
Summary
Belmont Parks and Recreation Commission voted 6-0 April 2 to amend the city—s athletic field use policy to add a winter allocation meeting for Northfield, a formal inclement-weather schedule, nondiscrimination grievance procedures and compliance steps for AB 2404 (the Fair Play Act).
The Belmont Parks and Recreation Commission on April 2 approved amendments to the city—s athletic field use policy that add a November allocation meeting for winter use of the Northfield synthetic turf, a formal inclement-weather schedule, a nondiscrimination grievance procedure and the reporting requirements of AB 2404 (the Fair Play Act).
Cody George, Belmont recreation manager, presented the proposed package and said it includes "three new sections into the use policy and one kind of like clarification" including the Northfield winter schedule, an inclement weather policy and AB 2404 compliance. The Northfield is the only city field available when grass fields are closed for winter restoration; the November allocation meeting was added at leagues— requests to coordinate winter play on the synthetic surface.
The commission's new inclement-weather schedule assigns time blocks on Northfield by location, age group and in-season sport so younger players get earlier times and older players progress later in the evening. George said leagues coordinated to allow flexible use when groups are not using their allotted time. He also described a new, formal written nondiscrimination policy and complaint process for people who believe field allocations have been inequitable.
AB 2404 (the Fair Play Act) requires local agencies to report specific metrics annually, George said: the number of youth in the agency—s jurisdiction classified by gender; total enrollment of participants in community youth athletics programs by gender; and the number of coed teams classified by sport and competition level. George presented the department—s calendar-year 2024 enrollment breakdown: males represented roughly 72% of enrollment and females 28%; the presenter noted four rosters listed "unidentified." The department posted the full AB 2404 documentation and the city—s annual reporting on the city website under the athletic use / Fair Play Act pages, George said.
George also described a minor priority change in the policy so Belmont-Redwood Shores School District (BRSSD) users receive priority on school fields over citywide sports leagues when the district requests use of its own fields. Commissioners pressed for clarity on what datasets are included in the AB 2404 report; George confirmed the city report covers leagues and programs scheduled on city-operated athletic fields, not every school- or privately run program in Belmont.
The commission approved the amendment by roll call vote, recorded as six yes, zero no. The vote was recorded for Commission members: Commissioner Cunha (yes); Commissioner Lightford (yes); Commissioner Whitmore (yes); Commissioner Hill (yes); Commissioner Michaels (yes); Chair Emkin (yes).
The full amended policy, the inclement-weather schedules and the AB 2404 roster templates and annual report are available on the city—s athletic use web page, the presentation noted. Commissioners asked staff to adjust graphics to explicitly show which programs are excluded from the AB 2404 counts (for example, high school, school-run or privately run programs not scheduled through the city).
Looking ahead, staff said they will monitor the winter allocation process and make minor adjustments as needed for next year and will continue coordinating with leagues and BRSSD on field sharing and communications.
