Lee County adopts Athletic Park priority system; local soccer group seeks priority access and affordable fees

The Lee County Board of Commissioners voted March 3 to adopt a priority-classification policy to guide reservations at the new Lee County Athletic Park and approved a sample reservation agreement; commissioners directed staff to remove a redundant qualifier from the draft priorities to ensure consistent wording.

Parks and Recreation staff said the park will include baseball/softball diamonds, a synthetic multipurpose turf pod and multiple smaller fields that convert into a dozen youth soccer fields. The classification sets four priorities for reservations: Parks and Recreation-sponsored programs (priority 1), Lee County nonprofit athletic organizations and local educational units including public, charter and private schools and the college (priority 2), Lee County residents and Lee County-based businesses (priority 3), and non–Lee County users (priority 4). The board approved a modification requested by commissioners to remove the word "all" from several priority lines to avoid overly broad language.

During public comment several youth-sports leaders asked the county to prioritize access and provide affordable rental rates for longstanding local clubs. Anna Fish, director of coaching for the Sanford Area Soccer League (SASL), told commissioners SASL has grown from 346 players in 2019 to more than 1,200 and asked that the county consider field-rental pricing and priority access for community nonprofit programs. "By granting SASL priority access to these fields, you're supporting an organization that has been committed to the community for over 40 years," Fish said. SASL leaders said the club serves primarily Lee County families and urged the county to keep fees low so the nonprofit can continue providing affordable programs.

Parks staff described a seasonal reservation calendar (spring-season requests due the first Monday in November, summer-season requests due in January, fall-season requests due in March) and emphasized the policy is an initial framework: staff anticipated refining the policy during the park’s first year of operations and retaining flexibility given opening-timeline uncertainty. The board discussed an appeal process and whether Parks and Rec decisions should be subject to appeal; staff said appeals for refunds or play disputes currently go to the Parks and Rec Board and said they could return with a formal appeals process if the board wants one.

The board approved the priority-classification policy and sample reservation agreement; staff said fees will be presented at a future meeting and that the policy will be implemented with flexibility for the park’s first seasons.