Sports Leagues Strike Out With Council

Who knew what, when, and does it really matter? That was the dilemma before the Woodinville City Council Tuesday night when it voted to uphold increased fees for its new sports fields.

It all started with eight sports leagues that booked the Woodinville fields for the 2011 sports season last December, at the 2010 rates, only to have the city ask for more money in January.

 The leagues claim when the city issued them permits, it was a binding contract. The city claims the permits do not fall under the legal definition of a contract because the leagues may cancel the season and get a refund.

 “We based our entire season on those fees,” said Helen Jackson, president of Woodinville West Little League. “We were told to get the money in by Dec. 31, and we did exactly that. Then we get a call in January from the city finance officer saying there was a mistake and we owe more money.”

The leagues said they were urged by city staff in the parks and recreation department to get their applications and payments in before Dec. 31. If the leagues met that deadline, they would lock in the 2010 fees on the fields, instead of the 2011 fees which doubled.

The leagues, which all received permits from the city prior to Jan. 1, contend that they were following instructions from city employees and had no knowledge that the new 2011 fees would be applied retroactively.

“We got a bill for another $6,000,” Jackson said. I really don’t know what we’ll do. The season is due to start in March.”

It’s too late to look for other fields to book, according to Joe McGrath, coordinator for Reign Select, a youth baseball organization.

“I book for a lot of teams and I didn’t look anywhere else because I have permits and schedules with these fields,” he said.

Councilmember Paulette Bauman pointed out that the new fees were widely publicized as taking effect on Jan. 1. She added that many of the leagues at Tuesday’s meeting were the same leagues that attended previous council meetings asking the fees not be raised.

The council raised the fields’ fees in August 2010, effective Jan. 1 2011, doubling the cost of playing ball on the new artificial-turf fields. Hourly fees for adult leagues increased to $70 per hour for city residents, and $40 per hour for youth teams. If fewer than 10 percent of a team’s members are city residents, the fees are slightly higher.

So if the new fees were in place, why were the leagues told they could lock in to the 2010 prices if they paid before Dec. 31? The city’s recreation department was dissolved because of budget cuts, and the last day for employees was Dec. 31. It remains unclear why the recreation staff told the sports leagues that getting the payments in before the end of the year would guarantee the 2010 field fees.

Councilmember Jeff Glickman said it was a few “disgruntled” employees deliberately going against the direction of the council. *But that is not the central issue, he said.

"We have no binding agreements," Glickman said. "These are permits, they are not contracts, they are permits. If somebody doesn't want to use the field, they get their money back. All they have to do is call."

The council debated several options for handling the situation before voting narrowly to enforce 2011 rates for all leagues using the field, including those that have already been issued permits at 2010 rates. Councilmember Liz Aspen made a motion to allow the eight leagues the 2010 rates, but the motion died in a majority vote. Council members Jeff Glickman and Paulette Bauman abstained from the vote, stating the situation was an administrative matter, not a council issue. 

*Editor's note: Previous versions of this story inaccurately paraphrased Councilman Jeff Glickman. After reviewing the city's audio tape from the meeting, the direct quote has been added.