EDITORIAL:

There was a time not so long ago when most of the news coming out of the Costa Mesa City Council seemed to involve some sort of political bickering. They put the Bickersons to shame.

And it doesn’t seem all that long ago — two years, in fact — during the heat of the City Council elections when one of the big issues was the need to get more sports fields in town.

So how heartwarming was it last month to see Mayor Eric Bever and Councilwoman Katrina Foley kicking around a soccer ball at the newly opened soccer fields at the Fairview Developmental Center? It’s even more encouraging to consider this more the rule than the exception these days as we watch city leaders act more like teammates than adversaries.

And it’s especially inspiring to see how these new fields offer fun for the local AYSO players and the residents at the Fairview Developmental Center.

To get this done, city officials had to pass the ball through a fierce bureaucratic defense. The state owns the fields because it oversees the developmental center so forging an agreement proved difficult and unusual. In other words, it meant mountains of paperwork.

But they stuck that ball into the back of the goal and that’s what matters.

We can’t wait to see the day when the new fields also play host to Special Olympics competitions.

That seems like quite a realistic goal these days as the council works together for a common cause. Keep up the good teamwork, gang. We’re rooting for you.