Dispute remains on how to use Toro Park in Salinas

Walkers and runners enjoying the open space are just some of whom you will see in Toro Park on a daily basis.

“I live nearby, and I love coming here to run the trails and into the hills, and just enjoy the park,” said resident Jonathan Gellar.

Jonathan Gellar, an advocate for young runners, was stunned when he found out the park’s dynamic was about to change.

“Friends of ours who are cross country coaches for the local high school team told us that they had been called over to the park to be told the cross-country season would be changed or altered because the course would not be available,” said Gellar.

That’s because a new project is underway for the Toro league in Salinas. The plan is to build three softball fields and areas for youth soccer and football for kids who don’t have a place to practice right now.

However, the idea doesn’t sit well with others who want Toro Park to be saved for recreational purposes other than organized sports. The group already has nearly 1,500 followers on the “Save Toro Park” Facebook page created just days ago.

The Save Toro Park followers are most upset that the group who wants to develop the land into an area for sports has done traffic and safety studies along with several others without consulting anyone about it. They believe it’s a county park, and a private league shouldn’t be able to come in and call it their own space.

Project supporter Warren Wayland told Central Coast News that the project is in the preliminary stages, and the county hasn’t approved it yet. He also says the sports teams would only be using it for a few hours after school and on the weekends.

“The kids need a place to call their own. They are already using the space to practice sometimes already,” said Wayland.

Wayland says that they would control the fields, but only because they would be responsible for maintaining the upkeep. Also, he says it would be no different than the local cross-country teams using parts of Toro Park for their running activities. He hopes to work with the cross-country team, so that they don’t affect their races.

But people like Gellar say the fields should go elsewhere.

“Just because we can have softball fields here because there is enough space doesn’t mean we should,” he said.