The Kanawha Valley has a shortage of places for kids to play soccer and Charleston teams are struggling to find open fields.
Cody Freas, league and tournament coordinator with Quantum Sports Center, said there are six fields between Culloden and Malden for recreational league soccer's youth-12 division.
"There's such a burden, because we don't have that many fields locally," Freas said. "It's hard to have nice fields when they're so overused."
The Friends of Coal Fields at Trace Fork - behind Target, off Corridor G - serve Charleston recreational soccer, teams from George Washington and Charleston Catholic high schools boys and girls soccer and the University of Charleston and Sissonville High School girls soccer teams.
However, the complex, one of a few turf soccer fields in the area, is under severe financial distress and could be put into foreclosure by BB&T if the Kanawha-Charleston Soccer Foundation doesn't pay off about $1.2 million by next fall.
Losing that complex could put even more stress on an already overpopulated soccer league to find places to play and practice, Freas said.
"There's too many kids," Freas said.
Sam Fox, president of the nonprofit soccer foundation, did not return calls for comment.
Aaron Wood, president of the Kanawha Valley Soccer League, said 12- and 14-year-olds on Charleston soccer teams, in particular, have trouble finding fields. While Trace Fork is frequently booked, the large field at Cato Park, in Charleston, is closed for the fall season.
"It doesn't leave much for the rec program," Wood said. "In fact, it leaves next to nothing, especially for the older kids."
Smaller fields for younger players are easier to come by.
About 750 children in Charleston are in youth soccer leagues, Wood said. South Hills and Kanawha City have the largest enrollment - 500 and 200, respectively. The West Side division only has about 50 players. Children on the East End usually sign up for either the South Hills or Kanawha City teams. Trace Fork serves as the only home field for the South Hills team. When it's booked or in disrepair - a water line leak recently resulted in canceled games but has since been fixed - Wood said it's difficult for teams to find alternative fields.
"The fields at Trace Fork need donations in a bad way," Wood said.
Efforts are being made by the community to keep the complex open. A fundraising campaign was started in August, to raise money to pay off its construction loan. More than $9,000 has been raised, but the organization has a goal to raise $150,000.
Charleston Parks and Recreation Director John Charnock said the upper, larger field at Cato Park was closed for repairs after a slip occurred. That work has been finished, but the field was damaged by construction equipment.
"What we still need to do is work on the field," Charnock said. "Where equipment was there, it is rutted up."
Teams were told before the fall season that it wouldn't be available until the spring, Charnock said.
"We should be good to go, come the spring season," Charnock said.
The Charleston teams have tried to play in other cities, like South Charleston, but its fields also are frequently booked. Gerald Burgy, director of public works, said the middle and high schools, as well as South Charleston's recreational leagues, use the turf field at Little Creek Park.
"I don't know anything about their fields," Burgy said, "but our fields are used almost every day."
Reach Rachel Molenda at rachel.molenda@wvgazette.com, 304-348-5102 or follow @rachelmolenda on Twitter.