A Mission Viejo Company, Municipal Sportspark Management, is proposing to operate softball and baseball fields at Costa Mesa’s TeWinkle Park. MSM would run a training center, operate a restaurant, and offer some scholarship opportunities to kids unable to afford sports lessons.
Sportspark Management wants a 20 or 25-year lease from the city. It would then invest between $2 million and $3 million to make improvements, including construction of a 14,000-square-foot training facility for skills development, adding a second story for dining, enlarging the parking lot, and changing bleachers to stadium-style seating. Sportspark Management would maintain the fields and give the city 10% of its revenues, which would amount to about $350,000 a year.
“It’s revenue to the city,” said Tom Hatch, Costa Mesa assistant city manager. “This will reduce the operating costs as well as provide revenues, but is the revenue for sure? There’s still a lot of work that needs to go into it confirming the accuracy of this information.”
The city spends $220,000 to maintain the four sports fields at the park each year, Hatch said. Staff will prepare the issue for consideration by the City Council.
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The City Manager, Tom Hatch, is quite correct in investigating claims that revenues, and more importantly, quality, is, and can be delivered prior to considering a VERY long contract by the proposal of this Mission Viejo company.
“Track record” is what is of importance to the residents of a community I lived in for 6 years, Costa Mesa, prior to living in Mission Viejo. Mr. Hatch, I believe, has a much better track record than the Manager of Mission Viejo doing the same job..
I would expect Hatch and the City Council inquire deeply into the contract proposal, and, perhaps, have an escape clause in the contract for lack of promised delivery.
I wish both that City, and a Mission Viejo based contractor the best.