Playing Ball Without Fear of ‘You’re Out’

After decades of bickering with California state parks officials over the location of its municipal baseball and soccer fields, Malibu finally has 10 acres atop scenic coastal bluffs to call its own.

Thanks to a complex agreement involving the California Department of Parks and Recreation and the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, Malibu expects soon to secure permanently the spot where youngsters have played ball for years with the ocean as their backdrop, across Pacific Coast Highway from Pepperdine University.

Under a wintry, slate-gray sky, hundreds turned out Saturday to celebrate not only their victory in this turf war but also a rite of spring: the opening day of Malibu Little League season, and a special one at that -- the 50th anniversary.

Nothing like a few diamonds to commemorate the Malibu Little League’s golden year, parents said.

It was safe to assume that not one of the 200-plus boys and girls throwing their caps in the air as their 23 teams were announced grasped an iota of the bitter legal battle that enabled them to kneel there in the grass along the baselines, staining their fresh white uniforms before one ball had been thrown.

They were simply caught up in the promise of a new season, on a day when the sod was green and fresh, the whiff of new leather mitts hung in the chilly air and all teams were tied for first.

As Steve Ciniglio, president of Malibu Little League, named the teams and their sponsors, spectators cheered heartily. Occasionally, they also chuckled, as when Ciniglio mentioned that the Braves were backed by Motley Crue. Tommy Lee, ex-drummer for the heavy-metal band, and his ex-wife, actress Pamela Anderson, have two sons on the team.

Throughout the morning, many parents and civic officials reminisced about the pitched fight that had preceded the smiles and cheers.

In 1969, Malibu Little League began using four acres on the west side of Malibu Lagoon State Beach, under an informal agreement with parks officials. Seven years later, the parks department began to develop a lagoon master plan, which called for removing the fields and evicting the league.

In 1979, regional coastal commissioners granted a permit to parks officials to improve the lagoon, on the condition that the department make every effort to find a new home for the league. Officials said they were willing to offer the Malibu Bluffs Park site as a temporary home, but legal technicalities prevented the relocation.

With no other land available, the league in 1981 sued the state to block its eviction from the lagoon. A judge decided in favor of the league and temporarily blocked the removal of the fields. Parks officials then reached a settlement with the league, agreeing to seek the Legislature’s permission to relocate the fields to the Bluffs Park. The league moved in 1982.

Subsequently, the two sides battled over whether the league’s presence would be permanent. For the last 15 years or so, parents said, the league has been under the threat of eviction.

Early in 2003, the league and the state, along with the city and legislators, began seeking a solution. Helping to break the logjam was the state’s need for funds to buy a swath of land next to Malibu Creek State Park from Soka University -- land that park agencies had long coveted.

Ultimately, a three-way deal was reached, the equivalent of a World Series-winning grand slam in the eyes of the participants.

It calls for the state to transfer 93 acres on the bluffs to the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy. The conservancy, which buys land to preserve as open space, would then sell 10 acres to Malibu for its ballparks, preserving the remaining 83 acres as native habitat.

Mayor Sharon Barovsky said an appraiser would determine a fair price, which is expected to be several million dollars. The state will use the money to help acquire the Soka University property.

“We are very pleased that all parties have found agreement,” state Parks Director Ruth Coleman said in a statement. She praised the city and the conservancy for “reaching out to find common ground.”

On Saturday, Jeff Jennings, a city councilman whose letter two years ago to Coleman helped clear the way for negotiations, stood near home plate at one of the three fields. As the father of three sons who played Little League ball and a referee for the American Youth Soccer Organization, which also uses the fields, Jennings acknowledged that he was far from a disinterested observer.

“It is just an astonishingly beautiful place to play ball,” he said.

All the wrangling was lost on Gabriella Grahek, 8, sporting an orange Mets jersey. But not the glorious location.

“It’s great to have our own field,” she said.