Haines City delays decision for youth football teams jockeying for use of a field

HAINES CITY — The Haines City Commission has canceled its special meeting, previously scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday, where it was supposed to discuss proposals from three city football programs jockeying for the use of Myers & Wiley Field.

According to the city's Facebook page, the meeting has been rescheduled to 6 p.m. on July 5.

The special meeting was called to consider three proposals for the use of Myers & Wiley Field from the following football and cheerleading teams: the Haines City Rattlers, the Haines City Vipers and the Northeast Rattlers.

The three teams have been in conflict for months over use of the field for practices and games. Parks and Recreation Director Terrell Griffin has informed commissioners at multiple meetings that the field cannot support practice time for three different teams.

The commission was supposed to consider the three proposals and render a decision at the July 7 meeting. But on June 16, Horace West appeared before commissioners and asked for an earlier consideration. West is a former Haines City commissioner and mayor as well as the brother of current commissioner and former mayor Morris West. He also represents the Haines City Vipers.

The Haines City Vipers play in the Mid Florida Youth Conference, which started its season Monday.

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West said at the June 16 meeting that he originally appeared before commissioners in April, asking for use of the field. He wants to use the field for five days for games and does not want to use it for practice time.

"The holdup for the entire state league is the Haines City Vipers. They can't finish the schedule without the Vipers' schedule," West said. "No one, from Miami to Jacksonville, can schedule because of us."

Mayor Anne Huffman resisted the idea of holding a special meeting, saying that previously, other commissioners had been upset when she'd called them.

"I think a special meeting really needs to be something that is crucial to the business of the city," Huffman said. "And I'm not trying to downplay the football program in any way. But to come out, to bring people out just for a special meeting because July 7th is too late, I think that that's really being unreasonable to the businesses that we have."

But the other commissioners in attendance — Commissioner Omar Arroyo, Vice Mayor Jayne Hall and Commissioner West — supported holding a special meeting. Commissioner Roy Tyler was absent. 

And while Huffman didn't support moving up the timeline, West expressed that he and the other teams had waited long enough. 

"I came before you in April. It is now almost July. So we're talking four months later, and I haven't received an answer," West said.

The meeting was scheduled for Thursday, two weeks ahead of when the proposals were originally meant to be heard. Now, there will be a decision rendered just two days before the original date.

"That is crazy — the jamboree is a couple weeks after that," West said in a phone call with The Ledger. "Oh my goodness, that's three weeks after everyone else has started. That is just leaving us in a very awkward position. That puts everybody in Haines City at a terrible disadvantage ... because everybody else is practicing every day."

West said his team hasn't been able to practice since the start of the season. And since there's no active, approved user agreement, none of the teams should be using the field, according to the June 16 meeting.

City Manager Jim Elensky said in a phone call with The Ledger that the meeting was rescheduled because City Attorney Fred Reilly is out on vacation and he anticipated legal questions coming up at the meeting.

West said while he can appreciate that Reilly is going to be absent, he thinks the decision shouldn't have to go before the commission, anyways. He wants to see user agreements for fields returned to the sole authority of the parks and recreation department "for a more timely decision."

West added that some days he thinks "maybe I shouldn't have gotten off the commission."

Maya Lora can be reached with tips or questions at mlora@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @mayaklora.