A brief miscommunication stalled the process, but an arrangement between Towson University and local recreation councils that will allow the councils to use of the university's athletic fields is back on track.
Towson University, the Towson Towne Recreation Council and the Towson Recreation Council are in negotiations that will allow the councils to use the university's practice fields for youth sporting events, a move officials hope will alleviate the shortage of fields available in the county.
"The new athletic director and his staff at Towson have been very supportive and positive about building a relationship with the community rec councils." said Jennifer Bolster, president of the Towson Recreation Council. "They essentially said, 'pass us your request and your needs, and we'll see what we can do.' "
After a meeting in late June, the recreation councils compiled a list of requests and sent it along, only to find out recently that no one at TU ever received the email.
Bolster, not wanting to press the issue, waited three weeks before checking back in. When she heard last week that university officials never received the correspondence, she re-sent it and promptly heard back.
In an email sent July 28, Mike Harris, senior associate athletic director at Towson, confirmed that he had received the request and said his staff was looking over the field availabilities in order to find a match.
Earlier this month, Harris said that while nothing was set in stone, the university would work to accommodate the requests around its teams' practice schedules.
"Working together with the Towson community is important for us," Harris said. "It's an important relationship, and we want to work with them as much as we can."
Regardless of whether an agreement can be reached, TU's willingness to work with the councils represents "a real step forward," said 5th District County Councilman David Marks, who along with Dels. Steve Lafferty and Bill Frank, of the 42nd District, have been involved in the field search since the beginning.
"Towson University has been a tough nut to crack for many years," Marks said. "They had guarded the fields very closely.
"There's a tremendous amount of goodwill that Towson University can gain by allowing the recreation councils to use the fields," Marks said. "The relationship continues to improve between the university and the neighborhood."
Bolster hopes an arrangement can be worked out to accommodate the upcoming fall sports — primarily soccer and football — as well as a fall baseball league, something that has never been offered in the Towson area.
With only one full-sized baseball diamond for use by two recreation councils, fall baseball had never been an option previously.
Demand for play
The negotiations with TU stemmed from a chronic shortage of recreation fields, especially in the Towson area.
Despite the growing population, the recreation councils have had to limit participation and close registrations early because there was simply no way to accommodate everyone.
With the area becoming more developed, and schools expanding, open spaces for recreation council activities are scarce. For instance, the proposed addition to Stoneleigh Elementary School could also eliminate fields.
Members of the recreation councils approached their elected officials in May and asked for help. A brainstorming session was held with Lafferty and Frank, as well as Marks. Two possibilities for fields emerged from the meeting: Towson University and the Timonium Fairgrounds.
The recreation councils met with fairgrounds management, but ultimately decided the location was too far removed from Towson.
Lafferty set up the meeting with TU, which he characterized as "very productive," in late June.
"There were no illusions that they'd hand over keys to the city, but it was very positive," Lafferty said.
Barry Williams, director of the county Recreation and Parks Department, said he thinks the potential arrangement is "terrific."
"I applaud (Towson University), that they're being partners with Recreation and Parks, both on the local and county level," Williams said. "As soon as we lock into something more tangible, more kids will get a chance to play. There is a dearth of playing fields in the Towson area, and this will certainly help."
The negotiations with Towson University aren't the first steps taken this year to gain access to playing fields, though they may prove to be the first successful ones.
Earlier this month, an arrangement for the county to buy the Towson YMCA, located on at 600 W. Chesapeake Ave., in Towson, was put on hold because of the economy. The county planned to buy the 17-acre property, lease 7 acres back to the YMCA for construction of a new building and use the remaining land for fields.
Finalization of that deal is still expected, but a timetable is uncertain.