LAS VEGAS (KLAS) – A roughly 300-kid youth football program is in turmoil after losing a practice field for the first time in 20 years.
The practice field behind Charles A. Silvestri Junior High School is at the center of a complicated situation. At the root of the dilemma, is a football program that’s practiced there for 20 years and is no longer allowed to be there on weeknights.
The Henderson Cowboys are butting heads with their league, the National Youth Sports Nevada. The Clark County School District is also involved in the situation.
The field used to be part of a joint agreement between the junior high school and the Clark County’s Parks and Recreation Department. The school would use the field for a couple of hours after school, and then it would be open to permit holders like Youth Sports Nevada. The league, designated that field to the Henderson Cowboys.
That all changed in December, according to Ben Joffe with National Youth Sports Nevada.
“In this case, Sylvester Junior High ended that joint use agreement, and essentially stopped allowing Clark County Parks and Recreation to rent it out to us or anybody,” Joffe said. “In reality, they took it out of the allocations, Monday through Friday, they do allow Saturday and Sunday events.”
The Henderson Cowboys, including coach Nick Baumert, were shocked by the decision.
“It’s ridiculous. I mean, we work so hard as an organization. We work so hard at coaching. We work so hard to provide these kids a safe place,” Baumert said.
The field is one of the only in the area big enough to host the Cowboys. The City of Henderson, working with National Youth Sports Nevada to provide alternatives, but they’re around ten miles away according to Joffe. Joffe and Baumert say that makes the commute longer and difficult for families.
“For the average parent, that might be something that they can’t do,” Joffe said. “That’s a long way for a lot of kids that kind of ride their bike to practice in most cases.”
In a statement, CCSD explained the reason for changing the permit to weekends only was so Silvestri could host their own after-school events.
Joffe says he doesn’t have a problem with Silvestri running their own programs, he believes schools deserve to have their own activities. He sees this as a larger-scale issue about a lack of dedicated youth football facilities.
Despite Joffe’s disapproval, the Henderson Cowboys leadership plans to continue playing at the field.
