SC Soccer Forums SCSoccer.com Forums Club Soccer & ODP Mt. Pleasant's Fight

The folks in Mt. Pleasant are organizing to let town council know there desires for scoccer space.

From MPSC:

A Recreation Committee Meeting has been scheduled to address the needs of soccer in Mount Pleasant. The meeting will be held October 1st at Town Hall, 6:30 pm.

Did you know that there are only 7 full size soccer fields in Mount Pleasant?

*The number of participants that will be served by those 7 fields in 2008 are 5,365*. Baseball/Softball participation for the year is less than 2,500 players, yet they have access to 20 fields.

The lack of field space is affecting Mount Pleasant soccer on every level. No training for Micro soccer, multiple teams sharing the same field and reduced practice times are all a result of the limited space.

The Town's current plan is to create a multipurpose field in Carolina Park composed of 4 baseball fields on which soccer can be played in the outfield. Mount Pleasant needs to create a single purpose, well equipped and lighted soccer training facility.

Take a moment to read the *attached information* regarding participation numbers, current facilities, issues and a proposed solution.

Remember to mark your calendar -- *October 1st at Town Hall 6:30 pm*. Be sure to encourage maximum attendance. It all starts with you.

Good for them! Long overdue IMO.

I wish them well.

Soccer vs. traditional american sports.....should be a good match-up.

I hope the pro-soccer folks include the data on the 2 tournaments the club hosts and all the money that brings into the city. I doubt any of the other sports add that kind of cash to the city coffers. These types of discussions tend to be emotional....present facts, focus on the money side...that's one thing politicians pay attention to and it's very hard to argue against...

There may be a gender equity argument in this as well. Plenty of fields for the boys to play football and baseball, but the current field space does not match the needs for the number of girls playing soccer. It may be a stretch, but worth a look.

There needs to be a standing room only crowd for this meeting!! Parents whose kids play micro and can't have full practices and games need to be there...parents who are frustrated that the Town of Mt P won't let kids play on the fields when it rains need to be there...parents who live in Mt. P but have kids playing elsewhere need to be there and explain why you made that decision. For the past two years, there has been an average of 360 soccer players per field in Mt. P That average is 60 players for baseball and football...not even close to being equitable. And now they want to build more baseball fields that don't get used so soccer can be played in the outfield. Soccer Watcher and Fireant are right on....I bet the Town Council has no idea about the money MPSC brings in...not to mention the estimated $100,000 economic impact (hotels rooms & meals out) to the Town on Tournament weekends and the Title IX angle can not be overlooked. Some things to keep in mind... Gary Santos a Mt. P native has no clue about soccer..if it ain't football or baseball he won't talk about it. Paul Gawrych, also a native played on the first Wando H.S. team and has completly abandoned soccer since. Billy Swails is a big suppoter of soccer and has grandchildren that play. Many on council still reference "HungryNeck" as the traveling teams which hasn't been the case for almost 15 years. Town Council needs to realize soccer is here to stay. Come out and support MPSC!

First, let me say good luck to Mt. Pleasant with their fight!

I have been trying to find the information refered to on the MPSC sight...can someone point me to the right page.

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Take a moment to read the *attached information* regarding participation numbers, current facilities, issues and a proposed solution.

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5365 players??? that is a huge club for SC.

Does anyone else find it interesting that there is now such an interest in new fields and more involvement now that MPSC has gotten rid of the old regime?
Could more fields and more space have helped build better teams earlier?
Or was there too much apathy before?

The area has grown alot..There is a lack of fields over the whole tri county..Better teams? I don't think space has anything to do with quality other than those in charge are real quick to close the fields due to rain and we have had our share of 6PM showers lately. Apathy? That will be determined by how many show for the meeting.

Deja vu all over again. As a former MPSC Board member (7+ years ago), the Town Council and Town Administration is very pro baseball. They got in trouble once for funsing a Dixie Youth team strip to their World Series while not funding soccer championship teams.

The numbers include Micro, Rec and select programs. This year is very tight with soccer space. Past years there had been plenty of room, field space was not the reason for nonperforming teams. Stand still training was a big reason.
Watch out when lacrosse hits, another sport competing for the same fields.