Athens Park and Rec hopes to have spring season

Published 1:00 pm Thursday, April 9, 2020

The Athens Parks and Recreation spring youth sports season has been put on hold by the COVID-19 crisis, but city officials are holding out hope the season can still take place.

The spring season, which includes the sports of baseball, softball and soccer, was set to begin in March and carry through the end of May. However, all rec activities were indefinitely suspended March 13 and are now on hold until at least April 30, when Gov. Kay Ivey’s state-at-home order is set to expire.

Athens Parks and Rec Director Bert Bradford said if the order does expire that day, the spring recreation season can still possibly take place.

“Basically, what we’re doing is looking at both sides of the coin,” Bradford said. “If there is a possibility to continue on, whether it’s a modified, shortened or adjusted season, that’s what we’re trying to prepare for. If not, then we’d have to cancel. Whichever way it goes, be prepared either way.”

The Parks and Rec Department posted a message on its Facebook page Wednesday saying if the pandemic situation improves and restrictions are lifted after April 30, they plan to have two or three practices and start playing around mid-May. The season would last approximately until the end of June, and there would be an in-house all-star game for each age group in baseball and softball.

Bradford said he meets with assistant director Chad Vining each Monday to discuss the latest and prepare for a possible modified season should the stay-at-home order be lifted.

“We want to be as prepared as we can be,” Bradford said. “This adjusts everyone’s schedule. All summer plans are coming into effect. There may be some people that want to play but can’t due to summer vacations or things like that. We’re juggling a lot of balls to try and make this happen, but we’re not ready to give up at this point.”

Bradford said the spring sports season is not only important for the children of Athens and Limestone County, but for their families as well. That’s why the parks and rec department isn’t ready to give up on the season until it absolutely has no other choice.

“First and foremost, it’s for the kids, but a lot of families are distant, and (youth sports) is an opportunity where they can spend a lot of time with their kids or grandkids,” Bradford said. “Any given night, during the spring, we have upwards of 3,000 people (at the Sportsplex) three nights a week. This affects a lot of people.”

Bradford said the Parks and Rec Department has a date in mind after which it would be too late to begin a spring sports season, but it doesn’t want to reveal that date just yet.

“There’s 100% going to be a date we can’t go past,” Bradford said. “We’re kind of going through our schedule and reevaluating that every Monday morning. Reevaluate where we stand, what the news is and what we can do at this point. It’s a constantly moving target and none of us really know.”