Protect Neighborhood Open Space.
Prioritize Community Benefit.
Evaluate Alternative Locations.
DYSA has demonstrated why its organization wants additional, more reliable field capacity.
What has not been demonstrated is why Pinewood Elementary or Madison Park needs this project.
DYSA stated that current Pinewood student participation in its league is “close to zero". Residents have not been provided data demonstrating that Madison Park needs even one baseball field, much less a multi-field dedicated league baseball facility.
At the same time, the requested independent studies evaluating traffic, parking, noise, stormwater, and environmental impacts have not been completed or committed to.
Madison Central Park currently provides flexible-use space for Pinewood Elementary students, neighborhood families, informal recreation, gatherings, and open play. Children already use this space every day.
The choice isn't between baseball fields and children having nowhere to play. Children already play here. The question is whether flexible space available for many kinds of play should be converted into dedicated league fields used for one sport.
Converting that space to specialized organized-league use should occur only after the need, benefits, impacts, site suitability, and reasonable alternatives have been evaluated.
What's Being Proposed?
Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) and Dilworth Youth Sports Association (DYSA) entered into a fully executed Extended Use Agreement on February 1, 2026 for the construction of:
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Up to 3 baseball/softball fields
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Batting cages
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Associated athletic infrastructure
at Madison Central Park, adjacent to Pinewood Elementary.
DYSA has since stated (7/31) that it plans to resubmit a proposal for two fields rather than three. However, residents have not been shown a formal two-field proposal superseding the fully executed Extended Use Agreement.
The Extended Use Agreementtherefore remains important to understanding the scope formally contemplated by CMS and DYSA and the questions surrounding what has already been authorized and what remains subject to further review.
In an August 3 Charlotte Ledger article published after DYSA told residents it planned to resubmit for two fields, DYSA went on to describe a broader vision for the site that included concessions and described the location as a future DYSA hub. None of this was disclosed to CMS or residents at the 7/27 site meeting.
Meeting notes from the establishment of Madison Central Park in 2010 document that CMS stated organized sports fields would not be allowed, specifically citing potential negative impacts on the surrounding community, including traffic.
The park was created via a $50,000 matching grant from the City of Charlotte where the city <Taxpayers> provided $25,000 while the neighborhood community provided $25,000 worth of volunteer hours to get the park created.
That history matters.
Before a fundamentally different use of Madison Central Park moves forward, residents are asking CMS to consider the assurances made when this community space was established and the reasons behind them.
Residents did not learn about this proposal through a community planning process. Neighbors began asking questions after discovering survey stakes in Madison Central Park. See the Timeline for the community’s repeated efforts to obtain information, understand the process, and have a meaningful seat at the table.
Since then, residents have requested information regarding:
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Demonstrated need among Pinewood and Madison Park families
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Traffic and parking impacts
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Noise
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Stormwater
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Wildlife and environmental impacts
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Frequency and intensity of organized league use
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Site suitability
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Alternative locations
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Protections against future expansion
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CMS' review and approval process
These questions are not about opposition to youth sports.
They are about whether permanently converting flexible school and neighborhood space is the appropriate solution to DYSA's broader need for additional field capacity.
We should not give up flexible-use space our school and neighborhood families use every day simply to solve DYSA's field-capacity problem.
We respectfully request this project be demonstrated to be for our community—not simply at our community's expense.
Please see below for the requests submitted by residents via e-mail to CMS and DYSA on August 9, 2026
Fact 1 : Fully executed agreement: up to 3 fields + Batting cages + Associated athletic infrastructure
Fact 2 : 68% of Pinewood's original open space has already been lost since 2010
Fact 3 : Remaining open space would shift from flexible community use to scheduled, dedicated athletic use
Fact 4: 15 baseball diamonds already exist within 5 miles of this location
Fact 5: Comparable multi-field DYSA sites are generally located in less residential areas, on larger parcels, and with greater separation from homes
Lisa Charde’s note from the neighborhood’s November 1st, 2010 meeting with CMS regarding the creation of Madison Central Park. Comments from Todd Sherrill, the CMS Site Manager are summarized in the document.
You may also e-mail us at SaveMadisonPark@gmail.com
