City Official Offering Northridge a Hand

NORTHRIDGE — Steve Soboroff has shot his hand in the air. The result could be a resounding high-five for baseball in the Valley.

Soboroff is busy enough without trying to stave off, at the 11th hour, the elimination of the Cal State Northridge baseball program. He is president of the Los Angeles Recreation and Parks Commission and is Mayor Richard Riordan’s point man on negotiations to build a $200-million basketball and hockey arena, and to bring an NFL franchise to Los Angeles.

But the Taft High graduate can’t fathom the Valley without college baseball.

And he can’t fathom why building a cozy, multi-use stadium along the lines of the 5-year-old stadium at Cal State Fullerton is so daunting. Fullerton’s 1,700-seat stadium was built for less than $3 million and a similar project planned for Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is budgeted at $2.8 million.

That’s pocket change to Soboroff.

He can explain it all over breakfast, which is all he asks of Northridge President Blenda J. Wilson before she makes the decision early next week whether to ax the baseball program.

“I’ll gladly chair this group,” he said. “This is not the kind of thing that makes me nervous. It’s too important a symbol. The mayor would engage in this in two seconds. This facility will be so busy they’ll have problems keeping the grass in shape.”

Soboroff envisions a blend of corporate funds, private donations and government grants combining for what it would take to build a stadium.

“My question to Blenda would be, if it’s a corporate situation, what is in good taste?” Soboroff said.

“Next, we draw up plans, get a price estimate, build a model, set guidelines for use and get the loot. I can think of 20-30 [corporate investors] who would have strong interest in that.”

Until Soboroff stepped in Friday, supporters of Northridge baseball were bitter that recent opportunities to gain funding for a stadium were passed up.

Los Angeles County propositions passed in 1992 and 1996 raised $875 million for capital recreation and park projects. Jack Foley, a Northridge professor of leisure studies, and a graduate student drew up a plan last year for 3,000-seat stadium and presented it to Northridge Athletic Director Paul Bubb.

“I did follow up and asked [parks officials] what the likelihood of a state university gaining funds would be,” Bubb said. “I was flat-out told that they didn’t see it as likely. That was enough to discourage me.”

The passage of Proposition K in November, 1996, a measure that will raise $25 million a year each of the next 30 years for parks development, again raised hopes.

But by that time Bubb knew the athletic department already had exceeded its budget and that sports might be cut in 1997, so he did nothing to seek stadium funds.

Soboroff says it’s time to act.

“If we can turn this into a San Fernando Valley pride of ownership venue, even though it’s not Dodger Stadium, it’s still important,” Soboroff said.

“I think we can rally the troops here.”