The agenda item on the Parks and Recreation Committee's meeting was to discuss an application for a new baseball league in town to use Memorial Field for its games; what resulted was a decision, but also a sparring match between a new Babe Ruth program and the long established Northborough Southborough Baseball Association.
Xavier Reilly, who recently chartered a Northborough Babe Ruth program in town, applied to use Memorial Field for its games during the upcoming spring season. The committee denied the request, stating that Reilly missed the application deadline, but offered the junior varsity field at Algonquin Regional High School.
Reilly challenged the decision, arguing that Babe Ruth players have always played on Memorial Field, and that the "policy states that they should play on the requested field if space allows. Why was the decision already made? For me, it's hard to swallow that we can't work through it and find slots so we can all play on the field."
"These young men have played on that field for years," said Reilly. "The policy says if there is space, it would be considered. I think there is space."
Allie Lane, director of the Parks and Recreation Department, said the lateness of the application and the number of games the new league would need the field led to their decision, but that Northborough Babe Ruth could apply for the summer season.
"This is ludicrous," said board member David Rawlings. "Don't blame us because the application is late. It is a sensitive issue, but the board discussed it at length and came to a compromise."
While the decision was final, it spawned a more than hour-long discussion and debate—sometimes heated—between concerned citizens and board members of both the NSBA and the new Northborough Babe Ruth, an officially chartered program introduced only weeks ago.
The contentious rift has spilled over into the public for a number of months, much of it stemming from former members of NSBA arguing that longtime coach Sean Durkin was not asked to return to the league. The NSBA, including its president, Jim Forbush, has countered that the association is open to everyone and it hadn't named its coaches and volunteers for the season.
Residents spoke at the meeting, most of them involved with Northborough baseball, either as a board member, former player, parent of a player or volunteer.
"I speak from a point of sadness," said Chet Leonard, who had been with the NSBA for more than 30 years. "It has gotten to the point where we are making decisions and the kids get hurt ... I am pleading for a merger. It's not 'either or' for me ... it's 'and.'"
Many argued that the rift is soiling the name of baseball in Northborough, and that "kids won't want to play anymore," asking Reilly why he had not approached NSBA to work together before chartering his own teams.
"Two times in March, I sat down with Jim [Forbush] and thought, 'how can we figure this out?" said Reilly.
Forbush and other board members said Reilly went ahead with his plans to erect a Babe Ruth team rather than working with the NSBA, which plays Babe Ruth level baseball, but is not an officially chartered program.
"Having two organizations like this in town is crazy," said Forbush. "And this is adults making these decisions. Bring the charter to where it belongs."
Mike Hodge, NSBA board member, added, "You used what wasn't being done, and got the charter, and then you recruited players. It came to our attention through back channels that you were doing this. You sought a charter on your own and you didn't even approach us."
Reilly contends that he pursued the charter, and league, because "certain people weren't allowed to coach or volunteer" in the NSBA, and because he wants to offer kids a more competitive level of play. Being a chartered program, he said, will allow teams to advance to state and regional competitions.
"I don't lie and my integrity is my life," said Reilly."The only kids we registered are when parents came to us. I want to attract more players. I met with Jim and thought I'd make a differene. I spent time with him and we tried ... we were 'this close,' but there were conditions that I couldn't accept."
Craig Robert, who has a ten-year-old son who plays baseball in town, said to Reilly, "Why wouldn't you have respect for someone like me and just come to the board meetings with your ideas? Something doesn't feel right. You are going to take 50 kids who play baseball and fracture the organization. What is the win in this? This is a fundamental issue in dividing Northborough baseball. Anything that gets in the way of that is the enemy of the kids."
A player who plans to play in the new Northborough Babe Ruth league said he was choosing in the league not only because he thought it offered more competition and room for advancement, but because he wanted Durkin as a coach.
Durkin, who is on the Parks and Recreation Committee, was quiet for much of the meeting, but eventually spoke, explaining his preference for Babe Ruth baseball. Speaking to NSBA members, he said, "No one has contacted me since September."
When asked why Reilly doesn't just give the charter to the NSBA, since it is already established, Reilly replied, "I believe in treasures, volunteering, time and talent. That's what makes Northborough what it is."
"Not one of you volunteered with us," retorted Hodge.
The Parks and Rec. Committee urged everyone to try to come to some agreement, before calling the meeting due to time.
Click on the video for more coverage from Tuesday night's meeting.