Oakville mother starts petition after town halts music at local sports fields

A group of Oakville parents is calling for change after being told amplified music cannot be played at town sports fields during games.

Sheila Sranko, whose 10-year-old son Jonas plays baseball with the Oakville A's, says personalized walk-up songs for the young batters and music in between innings has been a fun part of the game for years.

She noted her boy enjoys hearing Here Comes the Sun" by the Beatles as he steps up to the plate.

He loves it," said Sranko.

The boys always ask for their walk-up songs to be played, even during practice because it gets them going, gets them energized, gets them pumped up for when they are about to hit the ball."

However, not everyone appreciated this music.

Director of Parks and Open Space Chris Mark said that earlier this summer the town received some complaints about music from residents living next to sports fields.

To address the concerns, an email was sent out in late June to sports field users letting them know of the complaints the town received," said Mark.

User groups were reminded that amplified sound is not allowed under the permit issued to use the sports fields."

Sranko said she was disappointed by these restrictions.

She said she could understand if the music ban just applied to evening games, but the restrictions apply to all games at town sports fields, played any time.

These kids have been through so much over the last two years," said Sranko.

They were stuck in lockdowns. Now they have been finally able to come out and play and then this happens."

The Oakville mother says her son and his friends still enjoy playing baseball, but have difficulty understanding why they can play their music when they travel to surrounding communities, but not in their own.

The municipality of Milton confirmed it has no prohibitions against playing amplified music at its sports fields during games while the City of Burlington said it permits approved amplified music at sporting events.

The City of Mississauga said it permits amplified music at some sport amenities, especially during events like tournaments and festivals.

It noted there are areas where amplified music is not permitted due to proximity to homes.

Mark said the town's rules around amplified music at sports fields have been in place for years and thinks some coaches may have forgotten as a result of the pandemic halting play for so long.

He also pointed out field users can approach the town about music for certain outdoor sporting events.

If the groups would like to have music/announcements for tournaments/special events we will likely approve it, subject to times, commitment to monitor sound levels and directing speakers away from homes if possible," said Mark.

He noted no such consideration would be given to requests for music at regular season games or practices.

James Brown, head coach for the minor mosquito T2 team, said the ban does not reflect well on Oakville particularly when visiting teams come to the area and are told they can't play music during the game.

He argued some kind of balance needs to be reached between sports field users and nearby residents.

There are people living next to a park complaining about noise," said Brown.

I don't know what they expect, but there is going to be noise coming from a park, whether it is music or not."

Ward 1 Coun. Sean O'Meara said the town is trying to find that balance between the kids playing sports and the residents who abut the parks.

He said he has heard from a baseball league and some parents about this issue.

O'Meara also noted that prior to the music restrictions taking effect he would hear from dozens of residents around the Bronte Athletic Field every time there was a major sporting event.

Since the music restrictions came into effect, those complaints have virtually stopped, he said.

In late June, Sranko started a change.org petition titled Let the music play on," which calls on the town to reverse the ban.

As of Aug. 10, the petition had 279 signatures.

She said one supporter who signed the petition called this a Footloose" kind of moment for Oakville.