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Rosemead raises nonprofit residency threshold to 35% for new groups, grandfathers four legacy teams
Summary
After public testimony from youth-sports leaders, the council instructed staff to adopt a new athletic field use policy effective Jan. 1, 2027: new organizations must meet a 35% Rosemead-residency minimum to qualify for nonprofit rates; AYSO Region 40, Lady Hawks, Rosemead Rebels and Rosemead Youth Association are grandfathered at 25% and will be reviewed in three years.
The Rosemead City Council directed staff to adopt an updated athletic field use and allocation policy that raises the residency-minimum percentage for nonprofit rates and creates a grandfathering and review process for longstanding local organizations.
Parks and Recreation Director Tom Bokin and staff presented roster data for users of city fields, showing organization-by-organization residency percentages and participant counts. Staff said the Parks Commission recommended increasing the minimum residency percentage to 35% while grandfathering existing users at 25%.
Public commenters including Robert Bernal, president of the Rosemead Rebels football and cheer organization, cautioned that raising the requirement to 35% could force legacy organizations to charge higher registration fees or reduce participation; other commenters suggested a hybrid test combining a residency percentage and a minimum raw count of residents per season.
After deliberations focused on balancing stewardship of taxpayer-funded facilities with support for long-standing volunteer organizations, Council Member Steven Lee moved that the Parks & Recreation Department adopt the commission recommendation with amendments: designate four legacy organizations (AYSO Region 40, Lady Hawks softball, Rosemead Rebels football & cheer, and Rosemead Youth Association) as grandfathered at 25% with council review in three years, and require other organizations to meet at least 35% residency. The council set an implementation date of Jan. 1, 2027 for the new standard. The motion passed 5–0.
Staff noted the residency figures were based on the rosters submitted for recent seasons and that percentages may vary year to year. The council asked staff to return with an implementation plan, outreach to affected organizations, and a report on neighborhood parking/field-use impacts prior to the implementation date.
