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YMCA Rogers Park Plan Under Officials' Review

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By CHRISTIAN M. WADE and KATHY STEELE cwade@tampatrib.com and ksteele@tampatrib.com

The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 19, 2008

TAMPA - There was a time when the Rogers Park Golf Course was the one place in the city blacks could go for a round of golf or a family picnic.

Built in 1952 with donations and volunteer labor from black residents, Rogers Park was the only public recreational area open to blacks during the era of segregation.

Over the years, the city-owned park and 18-hole golf course has fallen into decline.

With budget cuts, revenue shortfalls and a long list of projects on tap, the city says it can't afford its upkeep.

A few years ago, the Tampa Sports Authority, which manages the park, hammered out an agreement with the Metropolitan Area YMCA to fix the clubhouse in exchange for using the golf course for its youth program, First Tee of Tampa Bay.

That agreement is now the center of the latest battle over the historic park, pitting city and sports authority officials against neighborhood activists who view the contract as another attempt to privatize the park and possibly disenfranchise Tampa's black residents.

"We are just so afraid that you're going to take it from us because everything is usually taken from us," resident Mary Alice Dorsett said at a recent community meeting.

To blacks, Rogers Park is not just a golf course, it's a piece of history.

Willie Black, an employee in the city's parks department, talked then-Mayor Curtis Hixon into letting him create a golf course for blacks. It was named after community leader L.D. Rogers and started with nine holes.

Over time, the park and golf course became a focal point for the community, drawing black golfers from across the country who wanted a chance to play on its fairways. The course, owned by the city and operated by the sports authority, is relatively inexpensive to play.

In 1999, when then-Mayor Dick Greco proposed leasing the course to the YMCA for 20 years in return for least $1 million in renovations, the backlash came hard and fast.

A grass-roots group, Citizens Who Support Keeping Rogers Park Public, held rallies at the park and press conferences outside city hall decrying the move in fiery speeches. The deal would have granted the YMCA control over park operations.

In the end, Greco backed down after the city council voted against it.

Now the YMCA is back, but this time with a more modest proposal that would limit their involvement to running the youth program.

Even so, the most recent proposal, approved in 2006, has come under fire. Among the critics is James Ransom, the last surviving relative of the Rogers family.

He said city and sports authority officials ignored the concerns of black residents.

"They never asked us how we felt about this, which is a shame because we think they would have found a willing partner on this project," he said. "They just imposed this on us."

There are concerns that the YMCA will restrict access to the course while running its youth programs, and that children from the neighborhoods surrounding the course won't be able to afford the YMCA program.

As the wrangling over the contract plays out, the YMCA has already begun work on the $250,000 project that will remodel the vacant clubhouse's kitchen and restaurant. Once completed, the former clubhouse would become the headquarters of the local First Tee program, which teaches children life skills, such as honesty and sportsmanship.

YMCA Executive Director Tom Looby said kids who live in surrounding neighborhoods will get priority and scholarships will go to those who can't afford membership fees.

"You'll see kids out here pay a modest fee but also kids on scholarship getting the same services," Looby said. "That's our only interest, to serve kids through the game of golf."

The program is expected to enroll more than 500 aspiring young golfers every year.

To reassure opponents, the YMCA gave the sports authority a letter stating there will be no change in the park's ownership or management, but the letter is not legally binding.

Lionel Ballard, whose uncle helped build Rogers Park, said the concern is that the park's heritage will be lost.

He supports the First Tee program, however, and wants to see it succeed.

"I'll be the first to hold them accountable," he said. "I'll be the first one to raise Cain."

On Monday, the authority board called for a special meeting with community leaders to review the contract and possibly modify it to assuage the neighborhood's concerns.

Board member and city Councilman Tom Scott, for one, wants language added to the 10-year, rent-free contract to clarify that the YMCA would not have exclusive control of the public park and that First Tee scholarships would go to underprivileged children.

"We need to clarify those things before we move ahead with this project," he said.

That could prove difficult.

Contractual changes would require approval from the YMCA, authority board, the council and ultimately Mayor Pam Iorio, who said she is reluctant to change the terms of the contract.

"This is a good deal for the city," Iorio said. "The YMCA is willing to come in and spend their own money to renovate this public building and offer this wonderful program."

The mayor said the city can't afford to cover the cost of the estimated $250,000 project.

"We have a long list of capital needs," Iorio said. "The money just isn't available now."

Reporter Kathy Steele can be reached at (813) 259-7652. Reporter Christian Wade can be reached at (813) 259-7679.

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