The situation with Atlanta parks is, after the $6 million
refurbishment last year, they are becoming much more zealous about
protecting the fields. According to the parks official who stopped
by, fields will be closed on a rotation system, they will be closed
in wet weather, and all fields are closed on Fridays. Metal soccer
cleats are banned, and other rules are in place.

The upshot is -- again, according to this parks official -- that
Iverson could become an overflow location or a regular venue for one
of our more organized "competitors": the kickballers, Frisbee types,
and so on.

As much as it may grate against our casual ethos, it's probably a
sensible idea from the Atlanta parks establishment. As a pickup
group, we are on the bottom rung when it comes to field use. We can
easily be displaced by lawn bowlers, Tai Chi, korfball enthusiasts,
or the Candler Park West Highland Terrier Club. Although scratch the
last one, since dogs aren't supposed to be roaming the pitches.

There are questions to be asked: What do we do if Iverson is closed
on a rotational basis? Are we refunded part of a reservation fee if a
field is unplayable?

Anyway, these seem to be the realities of a space-challenged
metropolis at this 21st-century moment, to coin a phrase.