Bellevue leagues battle over children's baseball fields - WSMV Channel 4
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A little league battle is taking place off the field, and kids are not the ones competing.
Some parents have accused a Metro councilman and his brother of using their power to take a desirable children's sports venue for their own personal interest.
It was a heated sports showdown that took place inside the Bellevue Shoney's restaurant.
Councilman Charlie Tygard said when it comes to a Bellevue little league baseball park, adults are willing to fight.
Alicia Reese, with the Bellevue Sports Athletic Association, played on the fields as a kid, and now her children play there.
But, she said she has recently learned the BSAA is in danger of losing its fields.
"I think it's the definition of a conflict of interest," Reese said.
The non-profit Bellevue Exchange Club owns the fields but leases them to BSAA. Their contract is supposed to last nine more years, but Reese said she learned the club is looking at dissolving the lease and giving the fields to another league, the West Nashville Sports League, which happens to be operated by a prominent member in the club that owns the field
Scott Tygard, brother of Councilman Tygard, is CEO and one of only two paid administrators at the West Nashville Sports League.
"We have an overflow of kids, and we're trying to find fields," Scott Tygard said.
BSAA and parents accuse Scott Tygard of trying to put them out through the club with the help of his brother, who is also a member, to expand his sports powerhouse.
For now, the BSAA is keeping its fields, but the fight for them is certainly not over.
The Bellevue Exchange Club formed a committee Tuesday that will decide the future of the fields and whether one or both leagues will get to use them.
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