The City of Ontario voted at their meeting on Tuesday night to delay their vote on the fate of the Jay Littleton ballpark. Most speakers at the meeting said they want the field to be preserved.
The historic ballpark was destroyed in a fire in Aug. 2024, and city officials have spent the last month listening to community input about the future of the field. They’ve proposed several options for the site, including rebuilding the ball field, turning it into soccer fields, or a water park with splash pads.
But officials have said rebuilding the park and its bleachers would cost $100 million. Councilwoman Daisy Macias, who represents the area where Littleton is located, said at the meeting that a water park would better serve people’s needs.
“We’re going to be able to build new memories, new things for this region to actually experience,” said Macias. “I mean, if you live in this area, you understand.”
But children who play at John Galvin Park and their parents said they want Jay Littleton to be rebuilt.
Josiah Chavez plays at John Galvin’s Ontario Eastern Little League and said that playing at Littleton is “one of his biggest dreams.”
“That field means so much to me because my late dad played there back in the 1970s,” he said. “My brother and cousins have played there too. It's something we all share, something that connects us.”
Meanwhile, the family of Jay Littleton said the last two years since the field burned down have been "brutal" for them and criticized the council for not attempting to fulfill past promises to rebuild the field. Littleton's three children agreed that rebuilding the park with the grandstands isn’t feasible due to costs, but believe the field and baseball diamond itself still has value.
“We don't have that same synergy that we had back in the 30s and the 40s when baseball was here. I understand that,” said Gary Littleton. “We all get that, but we still got tons of youth that are still trying to advance in baseball, and we're not giving them facilities to play in. We can build that park right back where it was, put some bleachers up in there, and repave that park.”
Councilwoman Debra Porada said she voted against the water park concept because parents in that area shouldn’t have to drive their kids across town to play.
“I'm not thrilled with this. I don't want it to happen, and I just think we did it backwards.”
At one point during the meeting, both Mayor Paul Leon and Councilman Jim Bowman appeared confused about the proposed water park concept. As a rendering was shown on a large screen inside the chambers, Leon mistakenly pointed out that it included three baseball fields, including Jay Littleton, only to be corrected by members of the audience.
“Even I'm confused with this picture,” said Leon.
After the meeting, Leon said he’d like to see a final proposal for the site’s future, “not a rendering of what will be worked on.”
“People don't want what they just saw,” said Leon. “And the guarantee that this isn't what they're going to get wasn't there.”
City Manager Scott Ochoa said the project will remain tabled unless the council decides to reintroduce a proposal on the ballpark’s fate.
