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Council backs keeping five Riverfront baseball fields and supports up to nine fields at East Side site
Summary
After reviewing Riverfront and East Side Regional Park concepts and community input, council directed staff to preserve the five existing diamond fields at Raymond Lucio Park and pursue up to nine tournament‑capable fields at the East Side site (phased), while also asking staff to return with a clear list of additions/removals, parking and maintenance plans.
The San Marcos City Council on Tuesday reviewed preliminary design reports for the Riverfront and East Side Regional Parks and gave staff direction to keep the current five baseball/softball diamonds at Raymond Lucio Park while studying an expansion of up to nine fields at the East Side (Quail Creek) Regional Park.
Jamie Lee Case, director of parks and recreation, summarized two phases of community engagement (multiple open houses and online surveys) and presented planning‑level data from the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) showing deficits in several facility types through 2030. Case reported outreach participation in the hundreds across surveys and dozens of open‑house attendees and noted the East Side project received Hays County bond funding and a mix of other local sources.
"This particular project was the top scoring project submitted to Hays County Parks and Open Space Bond Committee," Case said, and staff provided a funding breakdown the packet cited: Hays County bond funding, American Rescue Plan funding, a one‑time general fund contribution and park fee‑in‑lieu revenue.
Staff presented several layout options for the Riverfront site that shifted parking orientation to add head‑in spaces, reduced some near‑river parking in favor of pedestrian connections, and in some concepts removed or relocated the existing pool to the East Side site. The Parks and Recreation Board recommended a concept that reduced parking near the river and changed baseball‑field orientation; the Neighborhood Commission opposed that recommendation and urged retention of existing fields.
Multiple council members urged retaining the five existing ballfields at Raymond Lucio. Councilors cited youth‑sport use, community visibility and tournament revenue as reasons to keep the fields; they also raised maintenance and parking implications and asked staff to account for operational staffing and phased construction. Council members favored option E for the Riverfront (keep existing fields) and option B for the East Side (add fields) but asked for a clear, itemized list that matches current site features to proposed changes and for analysis of parking (including whether paid parking should be considered), shade structures, and maintenance needs.
Case agreed to return with the requested checklist and with refined cost/maintenance estimates to support phasing decisions and implementation planning.
