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Fields will sprout in Medford Sports park planned on 124 acres south of city By Chris Bristol Loren Swan had a dream of fields. Baseball, softball, soccer � it seemed to him that Medford suffered from a shortage of playing fields and a surplus of players. Frustrated over lack of practice space for local Babe Ruth teams, he decided to do something about it. "I couldn�t understand why we didn�t have any fields," he says, "so I started looking around for land." Six years and two heart attacks later, the retiree�s search is about to pay off with the pending purchase of a 124-acre farm he "found" just south of town. Owned by the Heitkamp family, the farm is believed to be the last big chunk of Bear Creek real estate within Medford�s tightly controlled urban growth boundary. It is behind the old Starlite Drive-in movie theater, sandwiched between the freeway and Highway 99. To Swan, it looked perfect for a sports park, similar to Grants Pass�s groundbreaking All Sports Park. But first he had to convince the Heitkamps he wasn�t a developer in sheep�s clothing; then he had to convince Medford city officials the plan was sound. He succeeded on both counts, winning over the Heitkamps and the city, which put together a unique financing package to buy the farm for $4.8 million and transform it into what will be the biggest and nicest all-purpose sports park in Southern Oregon. "This park is for everybody," says city Parks Director Greg Jones. "It�s not just for sports. The creek is a huge riparian asset, and it�s perfect for the (Greenway) bike path." Tentative plans call for a six-diamond adult softball complex and various baseball fields built to just the right dimensions for Little League and Babe Ruth. It would also boast seven soccer fields (including one with next-generation "Astroplay" artificial turf) and several covered basketball courts, not to mention a bike-racing velodrome. In the process, the park would join a growing list of construction projects that are putting a fresh face on Medford and the entire Rogue Valley. Just last week Jackson County kicked off a $2.2 million fund-raising effort for a 5,800-seat outdoor amphitheater at the Fairgrounds, with a Britt Festivals tie-in. Also, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival announced plans Friday for a new theater. Meanwhile, voters last month approved a $38.9 million library expansion bond that includes a new central branch designed to anchor downtown Medford and Rogue Community College�s Medford campus. And the city�s Urban Renewal Agency recently unveiled plans to convert right-of-way along the railroad tracks into a boutique-lined boulevard. From T-ball to slow-pitch softball, the impact of a sports park would be immediate. City officials say the sports complex is the biggest of six parks they want to add. Medford�s current inventory of 35 parks, counting schools, are overcrowded. Jones estimates that 6,500 kids and adults are directly participating in league-sanctioned sports, roughly 10 percent of the city�s population. "When you go by some of the school parks in the evening," he says, "you might see a couple soccer teams, a couple Little League teams and an adult softball team or two trying to practice � all at the same place." Moreover, he says the park would benefit the tourism economy as a tournament destination. "Portland teams like to come down here because it�s a little warmer and doesn�t rain as much," Jones says, "and California teams like to come because it�s not as warm as where they�re coming from. "Plus the grass grows here." The total cost of developing the sports park and expanding the rest of the city park system is estimated at just over $9 million. But the project is far from a done deal. The sports park is contingent on purchase of the property (the city has a $50,000 option), which in turn is contingent on financing. The city has a unique four-pronged financing package in mind: An increase in business licenses. A 3-percent increase in the hotel/motel tax. Nearly doubling the systems-development charge (or SDC) on new construction for parks. Federal grants, which a city-hired lobbyist is pursuing. The city already approved the increased business fee. The lobbyist is working over Congress right now, and the council plans to vote on the SDC next month. Voters will decide the hotel/motel tax in November. City officials convinced industry leaders the plan would actually benefit them, and little opposition is expected. "It�s a no-brainer," says Swan. "The hotels make millions off it (from increased tourism) and it doesn�t cost the rest of us a penny." Swan, a native of San Diego who moved here years ago to raise his family, describes himself as a retired promoter. He says the idea of a sports park is another no-brainer. Sports keep kids off the streets and keep things interesting for grownups, he says. Parks create open space, a relaxing environment and, best of all, a sense of community. "I think this completes the town," he says. "You can build all the houses you want, but if you don�t build parks, you don�t build community." Obituaries | Sports | Business | Classifieds | Tempo | Prime Times | So Oregon Sites | Outdoor Journal | Subscribe | Contact | Movies | Advertise | Real Estate Showcase | Archive | Editorials | Letters to the editor | Religion | Wake-up Call | NIE | Cyber Chef | Job Network | So Oregon Weather | WSJ Northwest | Forums | AP Wire | AP Money | F.A.Q. | Awards Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. The Community Newspaper Subsidiary of Dow Jones & Co, Inc Copyright �The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA