Claremont, CA · Youth Sports Equity
Same city. Same taxes.
Very different fields.
Boys baseball has 3 fenced, lockable fields at College Park — 2 with lights. Girls softball has 3 fields split across La Puerta and Wheeler Parks. Not one has both a fence and lights. Not one locks. California law calls that discrimination. We're asking the City Council to fix it.
The inequity
College Park vs. La Puerta & Wheeler — field by field
Both programs have 3 fields and serve Claremont youth. But boys baseball operates out of a single fully equipped complex at College Park. Girls fastpitch is split across two parks with no field that has lights, a fence, and a lock.
| Program access | Boys baseball | Girls softball |
|---|---|---|
| Players served | ~300 | ~150 |
| Number of fields | 3 | 3 |
| All fields at one park | Yes College Park | No La Puerta + Wheeler |
| Fields with lights | 2 of 3 | 1 of 3 |
| Fields with fencing | All 3 | 1 of 3 |
| Fields with lights AND fence | 2 of 3 | 0 of 3 |
| Lockable fields | All 3 | None |
| Sunday access | Unlimited | 4 days per year La Puerta, capped by Ordinance 11.08 |
The legal framework
California law is on our side
Fair Play in Community Sports Act · AB 2404 · Gov. Code § 53080Cities may not discriminate by gender in how they run youth sports and allocate public fields, lights, restrooms, storage, and access. Girls' programs are entitled to facilities equal in quality and scope to what boys' programs receive.
Courts weigh the whole picture — fields, lighting, scheduling, cost, and access — not any single item. Other California cities have closed gaps like these by adding lights, fencing, and amenities, and by ending arrangements that lock one program into second-class facilities. Claremont can too.
What we're asking for
Two clear actions from City Council
Repeal Chapter 11.08
The 1995 ordinance restricts La Puerta Sports Park lighting to soccer practice only and caps girls' softball at four Sunday permits per year. It's written into city law — and until it's gone, nothing else can move forward.
Read Ordinance 11.08 (opens in new tab)Commit to equal facilities on a real timeline
Girls' softball deserves correctly sized fields with lights, fencing, secured grounds, and the same access and permit rules everyone else gets — with a published, enforceable timeline from the City.
Add your name. Make the City Council listen.
Ch. 11.08 can only be repealed after a public hearing before the City Council. Your signature shows up.