by JoAnn Grbach, Staff Writer
A proposal to bring a 24-field soccer complex to South Germantown gained approval from county planners last week, and now the man responsible for starting the project has indicated he will give more of his own money to help fund it.
John Hendricks, president and chief executive officer of Discovery Communications, pledged $500,000 of his money last January to get the project going. However, "We're considering increasing our gift," Hendricks said following last Thursday's final work session with the Montgomery County Planning Board. He would not elaborate on how much he would give.
That increase by Hendricks, the corporate mogul and soccer dad, may come just in time for a project that has now jumped to $19.3 million -- a 28 percent increase over its original cost estimate.
Hendricks also said he will begin the corporate campaign to fund the complex by targeting Discovery Communications first.
The public-private plan will bring 24 soccer fields including a championship field with seating for up to 3,200 people plus an indoor arena to South Germantown Recreational Park.
Hendricks said he believes companies want to invest in a project that supports productive activities for youngsters.
"This should appeal very strongly to everybody in business," he said.
As for public funding for the complex and the non-soccer uses also proposed for the park, the County Council will now have to approve spending that money. A public hearing will be held in late February.
It was more than a year ago that Hendricks enlisted the support of Gov. Parris N. Glendening and County Executive Douglas M. Duncan. Both announced their support last January. Glendening has promised $3 million from the state's Program Open Space funds.
Since then the Maryland Soccer Foundation -- the nonprofit group born of the proposal to represent youth soccer interests and raise $11 million for the project -- has adapted and adjusted the project several times to meet county standards and allay community fears.
Last Thursday, the Montgomery County Planning Board amended a 1995 park master plan to allow for the additional soccer fields. The 1995 plan called for 13 fields and indoor arena plus other recreational amenities.
During the four work sessions on the proposed soccer complex, planners worked through a myriad of details including decisions to eliminate the possibility of using groundwater to irrigate fields, designating two fields in the soccer complex to be available for sports other than soccer, supporting traffic studies that conclude congestion near the park will not be a problem, deciding not to designate the park as a Special Protection Area and choosing which non-soccer amenities should be built first at the park.
But it was the foundation's business plan that received the most scrutiny.
Last week, officials were able to convince planners the soccer complex will be able to sustain itself through revenues generated at the indoor facility.
Not only will it be available for use for soccer, but also to lacrosse, basketball, volleyball and in-line hockey teams, of which there are more than 700 in Montgomery County among the four sports, according to foundation statistics.
"Diversification of use allows you to respond to trends," said Brian Hanlon, a senior associate with Brailsford and Dunlavy, which did the market analysis for the indoor facility. "Over time, you can remain adaptable and strong."
And while many have urged county officials to consider the consequences to the public should the soccer complex be unable to sustain itself, soccer proponents believe it will never come to that. The foundation estimates it will cost about $2 million annually to maintain the complex.
"The beauty of this is there's a mechanism called the indoor facility," Hendricks said. "The facility allows for an ongoing revenue stream."
The idea for the soccer complex came from Hendricks and his wife Maureen. The couple had visited other large soccer complexes with their soccer-playing children, and they believed Montgomery County and its 22,000 youth soccer players would benefit from such a facility. They never expected the controversy that has surrounded the proposal for the past year.
"I guess it surprises me because what we were talking about was green fields and kids playing," Hendricks said. "Playing fields are a long-term asset for the county."
But neighbors of the 658-acre park see it differently and believe the complex will prove to be more of an invasion on the community with the throngs of people it attracts, traffic it causes and noise it creates. Additionally, nearby residents believe soccer will overwhelm the park and its other recreation uses.
"The soccerplex monopolizes so much of the parkland, it doesn't leave space for the future needs of the upcounty," said Laura Creedon, a South Germantown resident. "It's a commercial venture on public land even though they're hiding under tax-exempt status."
Residents will now appeal to the County Council, especially since the rising costs associated with the project will fall on the county taxpayers.
"The total cost of this project is a moving target and it's always on the increase -- never on the decline," Creedon said.
Planning board member Davis Richardson of Boyds voted against amending the master plan because he disagreed with the plan to build most of the soccer fields right away. Nineteen fields, including a championship field and the indoor arena, will be built in the first phase.
"I think from the standpoint of phasing we're going in too heavy," Richardson said. "I'm uncomfortable with the phasing. I was hoping we'd have a phasing program that would allow us to take a deep breath."
Despite Richardson's objections, the proposal will move forward. Throughout the process, many county officials have touted the plan as being a benefit to the county and serving as a means to developing the park far sooner than it otherwise would have been.
Richardson also objected to which non-soccer amenities will be built first at the park.
A tot lot, basketball court and restrooms will be the first non-soccer projects to open with the park in the fall of 2000. In 2001, plans call for park trails, an adventure playground, group picnic areas and a central park that will include a miniature golf course and splash park.
Despite the criticism, the Hendrickses still believe the project will be an example for future sports needs in the county and that everyone will be pleased with the park once fully developed.
"We're pioneering [and] I think anybody pioneering something goes through this," Hendricks said. "When you think about it, all that we've added is seven or eight fields."