You may or may not be aware that there are "zero" designated outdoor soccer fields within Bloomington, Indiana City limits.  For the last 30 years the City of Bloomington Parks and Rec. have ignored the demand for designated field space for the Bloomington soccer community.  This is based on a "handshake" agreement created between the City of Bloomington and Monroe County stating that the City would develop softball/baseball facilities for tournament revenue while Monroe County would develop soccer facilities and Karst Farm Park was created.  For this reason, generations of Bloomington kids and adults have been forced to drive out to Karst Park or elsewhere to participate in the sport.  A drive that can be up to 45 minutes long depending on the time of day and what part of the City you reside.  This creates a problem of accessibility, sports equity and gender equity.  This "handshake agreement"  has prevented many Bloomington residents from participating in the sport, while most other sports have accessible fields and courts to use within City limits that have been paid for and developed by Parks and Rec.  Unfortunately many of these facilities cater to boys participation instead of girls.

Since 2016  Bloomington Football Club has been offering solutions to this by providing soccer opportunities within Bloomington City limits to youth players of all backgrounds and skill levels.  We currently represent 260 players from over 20 different countries and employ 17 coaches from a variety of backgrounds and experiences themselves.  Our players play on baseball outfields, basketball courts, parking lots and poorly managed grass fields which are difficult to play on and dangerous to our athletes in regards to injuries caused by uneven surfaces.  Despite all of this BFC has been able to develop players and teams that compete against some of the best teams in the State and region due to our dedication to positive coaching methodology and passion for the sport.

For the last 6.5 years as BFC founder/director/coach I (Jeremy Sweet) have been advocating for the players and soccer community requesting more attention to poor field quality and expansion of dedicated soccer facilities for BFC to utilize.  After meeting with the Mayor in Sept. 2019 to share my concerns I was told to communicate the Director of Bloomington Parks and Rec and subsequently members of the sports division staff.  After presenting multiple proposals over the last 3.5 years and requesting attention to poor fields and the need for more designated space for the soccer community, little to no progress has been made.  In fact their lack of concern or desire to improve the situation our taxpaying families have faced has been shocking.   The club has paid the City over $40,000 for facility rentals without having proper facilities to use and are now worse off than we were before due to field disrepair.  Since Parks and Recs refused to provide any assistance for equipment BFC has had to spend over $30,000 to purchase all necessary goals and equipment to create a realistic soccer environment out of make-shift fields.  This equipment needs to be moved constantly to adjust for baseball use as well causing hundreds of extra labor hours over the years.  On top of these major investments, the club also pays for the paint and labor required to line all of our fields while baseball and other sports have this provided as part of their rental.  These are costs that no other sports organization in the City of Bloomington has had to provide because the facilities they use already have been created and paid for by the City.  These players and coaches only need to show up and "play" while our club has had to do everything to provide a reasonable environment for our kids.  Imagine if local basketball teams had to bring their own baskets to the court, paint the courts and also play on courts with missing wood planks etc while still paying rental fees.   If tennis players had to bring their own nets and play on cracked courts, or baseball had to bring bases, backstops and paint to make a field every time they played. This is equivalent to what we are dealing with in soccer terms and still paying years of rental fees for what?

For the last 3.5 years all of our proposals presented have been ignored and denied except for one.  The removal of the infield of Winslow baseball Field 5 and conversion to grass which was in disrepair and relatively unused before BFC started rentals in 2019.  This infield conversion is almost 2 years behind schedule and still not usable.  The contractor that Parks and Rec hired did not execute the job well leaving much of the old infield to mix with the new soil they brought in.   This is preventing the new grass from growing well and leaving the surface uneven.  Meanwhile our players are being forced to continue to use the outfield which hasn't been seeded, leveled or top dressed for 3 years and has become almost unusable in many areas.  I have even had to spend my own time and money this past Summer hauling truckloads of dirt to the field to fill in holes and ditches without assistance from Parks and Rec.

Winslow Sports Complex currently has 6 baseball fields and 5 out of 6 of these fields primarily cater to boys and only baseball with occasional softball use in the summer.  Field 5 is used 5 days a week by BFC, 7 months out of the year.  We also utilize the outfield of the marginally better Field 6, 3-5 days a week as well because of our large player base and spacial needs.  BFC is the is the largest contributor of rental income to this facility and has the most participants.  However priority to Field 6 is given by Bloomington Parks and Rec. to a baseball league of less than 50 boys.  This league uses the facility only 5 months of the year with much fewer days of rental and significantly less participants.   They also get rights to the concessions and other storage areas on site even though they are there considerably less.  Parks and Rec. has also stated in their contract that they will fix the lights on field 6 for the baseball group while refusing to repair lights on Field 5 for us which shows preferential treatment and an inconsistency in services provided to their partners.

How can you help?

We need your support for the approval of immediate expansion of dedicated soccer use to Winslow Sports Complex Fields 5&6 and the entire fenced areas around these fields for dedicated soccer use.  This includes immediate approval for conversion of Field 6 infield to grass Spring/Summer 2023 as well as improvement of Field 5 to accommodate BFC's large numbers and improve playing conditions due to safety concerns.  This will help improve the environment for our families and allow BFC to facilitate other opportunities to other members of the Bloomington Soccer community.  This would be accomplished through adult leagues or pick-up play in the evenings and youth leagues on the weekends. 

Because of its central location and accessibility to many citizens and demographics, dedicated soccer expansion for Winslow Field 5&6 can create immediate and long overdue change for current and future generations.  We are not asking for new facilities but rather revitalization of underused infrastructure to satisfy the growing demands and needs of the soccer community.  BFC has offered fundraising solutions to help relieve the financial burden on the City for this expansion and are eager to be stewards of this property.  These have also been ignored.  The BFC community will fund and provide community work days to maintain upkeep and overall beautification of a poorly managed and underused facility.  This will also open opportunities to bring other clubs and teams from out of town to play at the facility for games or small tournaments increasing tourist revenue and building long term relationships with other communities in the State of Indiana.

The baseball league would not be displaced but rather change their training locations to the underutilized and available Twin Lakes baseball fields, Lower Cascades baseball fields, Bryan Park baseball fields.   They can also work with the local High Schools to play their competitive games at the brand new turf baseball fields both schools have to offer.

By signing and sharing this petition you will help us raise awareness for our struggles and bring opportunities to BFC,  as well as current and future generations of Bloomington soccer players and families.  By creating accessible and affordable playing opportunities for the sport of soccer in Bloomington City limits we are changing lives and helping bring the City of Bloomington up to speed on what they offer for health and wellness through the sport of soccer.  Currently Bloomington is behind State and National averages in this regard due to their own negligence.  This has become very obvious to all of our BFC participants whenever we travel to other towns and cities to play our games on quality grass and turf fields with dedicated soccer use for their communities. 

Thank you in advance for your support!

Sincerely,

Bloomington Football Club