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Choosing a Youth Football affiliate was an issue discussed at the Turlock Parks, Recreation and Community (PRC) Commission meeting this week.Recreation Supervisor Mark Crivelli stated in a memo:
The Recreation staff encourages youth organizations to apply to become an affiliate, so they can offer programs that the Recreation Department does not provide. By affiliating with the City of Turlock Recreation Department, youth organizations get staff support in use of City Facilities at a reduced rate and support in securing school district facilities as needed.
Two youth football organizations, (Turlock Youth Football and Trans Valley Youth Football,Turlock) have completed forms requesting affiliate status as a sports group with Parks, Recreation and Public Facilities. Both groups are football leagues that offer programs at the same time of the year for the same age group of youth. Each application is complete and required criteria have been met.
The issue is that an affiliate cannot compete with current recreation programs and cannot compete with another like affiliate.
The reason being an affiliate is so important is that it helps secure playing facilities. The Joe Debely Stadium Renovation project and its artificial turf have increased the desire to get priority in reserving the field. The City is second in reservation prioritization, only behind the School District itself.
Representatives from both TYF and TVYF of Turlock both gave presentations on the services their organization offer and would offer as affiliates.
Turlock Youth Football wanted to stake their claim on the rights to be an affiliate based on their 26 year history of being a staple of youth football in Turlock. TYF also focused on being from Turlock, “we are Turlock,” and their 400 plus football players.
Ernie Peters and Joe Fagundes, both founders of TYF, spoke to the history and how much the organization has contributed to the community, both in financial donations and volunteering. Both Peters and Fagundes didn’t want to just see TYF pushed aside and thought it would be a slap in the face to all the people who have worked many years to provide football for the kids in Turlock.
Jon Nixon of TVYF, Turlock explained that his organization could co-exist with TYF but that his TVYF would be offering kids a chance to play that couldn’t play for TYF and guarantees kids 10 plays a game. Nixon stated that his office is located on Center Street in Turlock and that the TVYF has been around the area for 22 years with 3,200 participants.
PRC Commission Chair Brent Bohlender asked if the organizations could alternate Saturdays (when they both normally play). TYF said that it was not possible and TVYF,Turlock said that they could.
TYF representatives were asked why they were not an affiliate already after 26 years. TYF stated that they did not know about being an affiliate.
Being an affiliate organization with the City of Turlock, the youth organization pays an affiliate fee of $3.50 per youth participant and $4.50 for adults. An additional $6.00/youth and $8.00/adult is charged for all non-residents.
City Recreation staff stated they could review possible revisions and look into if it was appropriate to eliminate the cap of only one affiliate at this time.
An organization can still operate in Turlock whether they are an affiliate or not, it’s just that an affiliate gets a discount on city facility fees and scheduling priority with city and school facilities.
The PRC Commission ended the issue with no action and scheduled the issue to be on the agenda again for the February 10, 2010 meeting.
After all interested parties left the meeting the PRC Commission again discussed the issue during the Commissioner Comments section of the agenda.
Discussion included commissioners’ thoughts on if being from Turlock for a long time gave the right to affiliate status, if they could investigate their non-profit status and financials first, and why one has waited so long to be an affiliate while the other just changed their non-profit address from Hilmar to Turlock.
City Staff said that each organization had spies that talked to each other, so one heard that their Hilmar address might keep them from getting affiliate status.
Neither of the organizations heard these questions and comments to respond to. The agendized item had already taken place and the “extra” discussion appears to be a Brown Act Violation.