Phase II seeks approval

Paul Clinton

The City Council is expected to set the ball rolling on the second

phase of a brand new $18-million sports complex at its meeting on

Tuesday, officials said. Council approval is needed before the

project can move forward.

The bulk of the work on the complex, in the heart of Surf City,

may be finished by spring -- but the complex won’t be available for

raucous softball battles and soccer matches until Oct. 1.

Grass turf on the eight fields of the Huntington Central Park

Sports Complex must be given six months to bond to the dirt surface,

said Dave Dominguez, the city’s manager of facilities, development

and concession.

“We were always planning on having an establishment period for the

turf,” Dominguez said. “It’s got to establish itself. If it doesn’t,

it will get torn up.”

The complex is at a 45-acre section of Central Park, bounded by

Goldenwest Street, Gothard Street, Ellis Avenue and Talbert Avenue.

The city’s Community Services Commission at a Jan. 8 meeting

recommended moving forward with the second phase of the project,

which began last year.

By March 1, contractor Valley Crest is expected to wrap up work on

eight softball fields, backstops and a parking lot.

In the second phase, expected to be completed later in the year,

Santa Ana-based Valley Crest is building two artificial-turf soccer

arenas, two plastic-tile roller hockey rinks and a nine-station

batting cage.

Demand has been high for use of the fields and arenas, Dominguez

said.

“We’re getting calls now,” Dominguez said. “They’re chomping at

the bit.”