CAMARILLO : School District Backs Off on Stadium Pursuit

The Pleasant Valley Elementary School District board has voted to move into low gear in its pursuit of a field hockey stadium.

The board decided Thursday not to spend any money at this time to explore a proposal by the Field Hockey Federation to build a $500,000 artificial-turf stadium on the grounds of Monte Vista Intermediate School.

School officials said they are concerned that the federation, a Ventura County group, may be using Pleasant Valley as a pawn in the group’s negotiations with Moorpark College to build a stadium on the college campus.

“I don’t like to feel I’m being used as a pressure point for another public agency,” Pleasant Valley board member Val Rains said.

Federation officials said they want only one field hockey stadium in Ventura County.

The federation already has a tentative contract with Moorpark College to build a stadium that could be used both by students and outside field hockey groups.

The contract has only to be reviewed by Ventura County Community College District attorneys and approved by the college district board.

But federation Vice President Walt Robbins said the group approached Camarillo because of frustration with the progress of negotiations with Moorpark College, which have dragged on more than a year.

Although the board agreed not to spend any money exploring the federation proposal, they decided to set up a meeting between Robbins and the Monte Vista principal and teachers to gauge the school’s interest in the proposed stadium.