South Suburban Parks and Recreation has been longtime partners with Littleton Soccer Club and its parent organization, Colorado Youth Soccer. The most recent outcome of this partnership has been an additional artificial turf athletic field at David A. Lorenz Park, 8422 S. Colorado Blvd., just south of County Line Rd. Lorenz Park is regional in nature and covers over 100 acres including a portion of which is on a former landfill property. The park has four multi-use fields and one ball field which are covered with 10.25 acres of synthetic turf which requires no water and stays green year round.

So how did the partnership between youth soccer and South Suburban result in even more green? With the skyrocketing costs of water and power mower fuel, Colorado Youth Soccer (CYS) has turned their attention to projects such as Lorenz Park with its artificial turf fields. The most recent field at Lorenz Park was completed in early summer with funds amounting to $16,500 contributed by CYS/Littleton Soccer Club, $613,502 awarded through Great Outdoors Colorado grant and South Suburban providing $246,429 for a total project cost of $876,431.

But where did the youth soccer money come from? In 1996, the membership of Colorado Youth Soccer (CYS) voted to assess themselves $1.50 for the development of playing fields. CYS determined that their money would be best spent awarding grants to local clubs that could pass the dollars along to their community field providers. In 1998, a CYS committee was created to distribute the funds and they focused on field improvement and new field development. Littleton Soccer Club championed South Suburban's Lorenz Park project to the CYS Field Foundation and the funds were granted. CYS statewide membership tops 60 clubs and about 68,000 youth. This member ship is able to fund between five and ten grants annually contributing between $70,000 and $110,000 to this noble cause.

Littleton Soccer Club's Executive Director, Pete Barrett, noted that "we are happy to contribute to field development that gets kids as young as 4 years old playing soccer with a minimal investment on the part of parents. They get outside in the fresh air run off energy and calories. It's a sport they can play all their lives."

South Suburban Parks and Recreation continues to add artificial turf, greening the landfill that resides under Lorenz Park. South Suburban is thrilled to have partners like Littleton Soccer Club and Colorado Youth Soccer that support play places for the community's youth by putting their "green" where their heart is.