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Community recreation is important for health, economic vitality and quality of life, so we’re happy our local governments are pursuing places for people to play. Unfortunately, there appears to be a lack of significant coordination between Hagerstown and Washington County, and even within these local governments themselves.
Everyone seems to agree the community is losing out by not having facilities for youth sports like soccer, volleyball, basketball and lacrosse. Tournaments throughout the region are a big deal, and communities with adequate facilities can attract families to their areas and reap the economic rewards that go with hotel stays, meals, gasoline sales and the like.
Hagerstown has been working on an indoor sports complex for some time, and hopes to involve the Maryland Stadium Authority in the project. With the fate of the Hagerstown Suns Class A baseball team in a state of flux, as it always seems to be, the city is also concerned about what will happen with the old Municipal Stadium if the team moves, and a focus on youth sports might be an answer.
But now Washington County is pitching the idea of a multipurpose center that could host youth sports as well, carved from property south of Hagerstown off Md. 65 that is to become a firefighting training center. This news caught some fire and rescue personnel and at least one commissioner by surprise, because it would give the training center less room for planned expansion.
Obviously, multiple parties need to sit down and have thorough discussions.
First, each respective government needs to figure out what it wants to do, and do so in the light of day, without hatching schemes of which key players are unaware. Even if, as the county says, it is just playing around with ideas at this point, everyone needs to be involved so there are no more surprises.
As for the city, the divide between Mayor Bob Bruchey, who has always favored a new stadium for the Suns, and the council, which has been more hesitant, needs to be settled once and for all. It is doubtful the Maryland Stadium Authority will fund anything if there is dissent within the city itself.
But beyond this, we are also concerned that the two governments do not seem to have coordinated their efforts. The two proposed complexes appear to be similar, and we have trouble believing that the community can support two. Does this mean the city and county will be competing for youth sports tournaments? The pitfalls and inefficiencies seem obvious.
We also have concerns that a county recreation center might eat into long-range plans for public safety training, if that’s where the county ultimately decides it will go.
If the city’s feasibility study for its complex is positive, and if the state stadium authority is on board with funding, we believe it would be best for the county to stick with its original plans for a training center and forgo the duplication of services. That done, what funding and energy it was planning for its own facility could instead be used in concert with the city’s project.
This would seem to serve everyone’s needs, and provide for one excellent recreation center instead of two competing and less-impressive centers.
So often, the city and county have lamented their duplication of services. If they seriously want to reverse that unfortunate trend, this would be a good place to start.
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