Oceanside's "The Goat" Is Saved For Now

Great news from Oceanside as community activists came out in force, even breaking into a "Save The Goat" chant," to save Center City Golf Course at Goat Hill from development as a mostly private soccer academy. Here is yesterday's blog post on the movement.

J. Harry Jones reports for the San Diego Union-Tribune.

A proposal to turn Oceanside’s city-owned Center City Golf Course into a soccer academy, decried by hundreds who attended a City Council meeting Wednesday night, fell apart when the council later directed its staff to end negotiations with Dell Roy Hansen, the owner of Major League Soccer Real Salt Lake.

Instead council members said they wanted the city to revisit a proposal that would save the golf course and augment the area, better known as Goat Hill, with a botanical garden and community farm.

Real Salt Lake’s plan was to create a soccer academy on the land, reduce the golf course size considerably, and build a 5,000-seat stadium that would be home to a minor league professional soccer team and probably a professional women’s soccer team in coming years.