Norwalk : Hearing on Soccer Ban Gets Argumentative and Bitter

A crowd of more than 100 area residents flooded a public hearing this week to argue the future of adult soccer leagues on fields owned by the Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District.

The district in December suspended the games after residents complained that, among other problems, players and spectators were drinking alcohol, urinating and undressing in public. Until the suspension, three leagues and more than 2,000 players had held the Sunday games year-round at three campuses from 8 a.m. until dark.

Supporters and opponents at Monday’s meeting were almost evenly matched, and so bitter about the issue that they sat or stood on opposite sides of the school board’s meeting room.

Most opponents wanted a permanent ban of the leagues. “Anything less . . . is totally unacceptable,” resident Harold Ciesa said. “My wife comes home from the First Baptist Church every Sunday morning and witnesses the urination and drinking.”

Soccer defenders blamed the problems on a handful of unruly spectators, and they said the games were a healthy outlet for local families who participated. At least one league organizer, noting that most participants were Latino, accused the soccer critics of racism.

District officials are studying new rules for use of the fields. The strictest version would eliminate the Sunday games, Deputy Supt. Howard Rainey said.