Seattle School Board Candidate Responses on Sportsfields Questionnaire

School Board candidates provided responses to our questionnaire leading up to the election on November 6, 2007. We've retained these from the boardmembers that were elected. These unedited responses provide insights into boardmember views on issues that are important to field users, athletes, and parents. Congratulations School Board members.

District No. 1

Peter Maier

No response

District No. 2

Sherry Carr

1. What are your favorite recreational activities - active and passive? 

> I enjoy taking advantage of the beauty of the Pacific Northwest.  I hike, camp, sail, walk whenever my schedule and the weather allows.  I also enjoy reading. 

2. Are you familiar with the Seattle Schools/Parks Joint Use Agreement that allows for the shared use of public facilities between the public schools system and the Seattle Parks Department? (see link for more info: http://www.seattle.gov/parks/Publications/JointUse.htm) What changes might you make for this agreement to work better?    

> I have children who have been actively involved in organized athletics in our community for 10 years, including soccer, basketball and softball.  I am familiar with the agreement, but by no means an expert.  I would look to gain the input of those community users who are much more familiar and consider their ideas for improvement.

3. Do you agree that maximizing the use of schools’ athletic facilities is in the interests of the public good?

> A strong yes to this.  School District assets are public assets and the public should have the opportunity to use them.  As a parent, I know that the demand for fields is high and scheduling of fields is a challenge, so maximizing facility use would be helpful.  I also know that in addition to the benefits children derive from participating in organized athletics that parents gain a sense of community and belonging that makes our city stronger.

4. Do you think that athletics are a valuable component in the education and raising of our youth?  

> Another strong yes.  A well rounded academic experience has to be more than the basics of math, reading and writing.  It should include the arts and a strong component of health and PE.  Athletics also provides the opportunity for students to work in teams where they learn basic skills of how to work together for a commonly shared goal.

5. In 2004, the Seattle School District unilaterally raised (“after hour”) athletic field rates for adult (only) users to $95/hour versus $45/hour for the same type field rented by the Parks Dept (and Parks handles the scheduling for both). Do you think adults should pay rental fees at Seattle schools that are significantly higher than those for any other public facility in our region? Do you think there should be a public policy to gain citizen input before adjusting such rental fees?  

> I am not familiar with the specifics of this decision and I would want to know more before I weighed in with a detailed response.  I would want to understand the thinking behind such a decision and the justification for the specific values established.  I would state that I believe strongly that citizen and community input should be gained wherever possible, and I would work for policy changes to ensure that happens. 

> Yes.  The weather in our region renders many of our natural turf fields unusable during many months of the year and impacts the individual school's ability to use the fields as well as the community.  Given the high demand for fields, this creates even greater challenges for teams and groups to gain access to fields.  Turf fields provide a great alternative to muddy grass fields during these months.  I would look for revisions to follow the process used for capital improvements in the Seattle Public Schools, including public input and impact assessments.

 

District No. 3

Harium Martin-Morris

1. What are your favorite recreational activities - active and passive? 

> My family are big soccer fan at the college, professional and recreational level.  Both of our children have played recreation and select soccer in Seattle. My son also played at the college level.  I coached rec soccer for 7 seven years.

2. Are you familiar with the Seattle Schools/Parks Joint Use Agreement that allows for the shared use of public facilities between the public schools system and the Seattle Parks Department? (see link for more info: http://www.Seattle.gov/parks/Publications/JointUse.htm) What changes might you make for this agreement to work better? 

> Yes, I am briefly familiar with the agreement.  I would like to hear what people feel is currently wrong with the agreement that it is not meeting their needs.  From how I understand the agreement there are two central scheduling offices.  I would like to see one office scheduling.

3. Do you agree that maximizing the use of schools’ athletic facilities is in the interests of the public good? 

> Absolutely! 

4. Do you think that athletics are a valuable component in the education and raising of our youth? 

> Yes, athletics are a major part of building a good citizen. 

5. In 2004, the Seattle School District unilaterally raised (“after hour”) athletic field rates for adult (only) users to $95/hour versus $45/hour for the same type field rented by the Parks Dept (and Parks handles the scheduling for both). Do you think adults should pay rental fees at Seattle schools that are significantly higher than those for any other public facility in our region? Do you think there should be a public policy to gain citizen input before adjusting such rental fees? 

> I am not sure why there is a difference in pricing.  But we should have a discussion about the rates in a open fashion.  If adjustment need to be made, we should do so. 

6. Many parks and schools districts in the Seattle region are converting athletic fields to synthetic (Field Turf-type) surfaces, especially at facilities that are already lit as a means to create greater capacity with existing infrastructure. Do you support funding for these types of playfield improvement projects or do you have other ideas on how to manage our public assets more efficiently? 

> Yes I support the ability of our citizen to maximize the use of the fields that are own by the school district. 

District No. 6

Steve Sundquist

1. What are your favorite recreational activities - active and passive?

> In the active category I enjoy biking, swimming, playing recreational basketball, camping and hiking.  On the more passive side I enjoy current events-related reading (e.g. newspapers and periodicals), spending time with my family, and watching the Mariners at Safeco Field.  I have "retired" from my earlier career as a recreational softball and soccer player.

2. Are you familiar with the Seattle Schools/Parks Joint Use Agreement that allows for the shared use of public facilities between the public schools system and the Seattle Parks Department? (see link for more info: http://www.seattle.gov/parks/Publications/JointUse.htm) What changes might you make for this agreement to work better?

> I am aware of this agreement broadly, but am not familiar with the details of how the two parties (and the public) feel that it is working.  I will need to learn more about the advantages and disadvantages of the current agreement before I advocate for specific changes.

3. Do you agree that maximizing the use of schools’ athletic facilities is in the interests of the public good?
> Our schools and our parks are both public institutions, and we have an obligation to ensure that these facilities create the broadest possible benefit for our city.

4. Do you think that athletics are a valuable component in the education and raising of our youth?

> I do.  I grew up playing on athletic teams (baseball, basketball, and soccer mostly), and I was a three year baseball letterman in high school.  Since then I have been very active on a variety of recreational and informal teams.  In addition to the obvious mental and physical health benefits of athletics, many important life lessons are learned while participating as well.

5. In 2004, the Seattle School District unilaterally raised (“after hour”) athletic field rates for adult (only) users to $95/hour versus $45/hour for the same type field rented by the Parks Dept (and Parks handles the scheduling for both). Do you think adults should pay rental fees at Seattle schools that are significantly higher than those for any other public facility in our region? Do you think there should be a public policy to gain citizen input before adjusting such rental fees?

> I certainly agree that there should be a process of public engagement when significant changes are contemplated to user fees like this.  However, it is difficult to be specific about what level of fee is appropriate until I have a more detailed understanding of the school district's costs for these facilities.

6. Many parks and schools districts in the Seattle region are converting athletic fields to synthetic (Field Turf-type) surfaces, especially at facilities that are already lit as a means to create greater capacity with existing infrastructure. Do you support funding for these types of playfield improvement projects or do you have other ideas on how to manage our public assets more efficiently?
> Many of these investments in synthetic surfaces undoubtedly make sense, and both my daughters and I have enjoyed playing on them in softball leagues, soccer leagues, etc.  Determining how these investments should  be paid for is an exercise that requires focused study, and should be based on a more detailed understanding of the costs and potential trade-offs than I possess at the current time.  I am interested in learning more about these issues, and I appreciate your advocacy on them.