В Лайн-Хейвене утвердили арендную плату для футбольной команды «Рейдерс», но руководство обещает продолжить борьбу за снижение тарифов

Lynn Haven Raiders speak out on potential field rental fees increase LYNN HAVEN, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) - For the Lynn Haven Raiders, football is more than just a sport. “It’s about the leadership, the integrity, the accountability that you hold kids to,” said Devin Hayes, Lynn Haven Raiders’ coach. The nonprofit youth football and cheer league says it has been part of the community for decades and is now in its 60th season. The Raiders say they serve about 200 to 250 kids each year. “We don’t win every game, but we work hard every game, we’ve been doing that for 60 years,” said Michael Russ, Lynn Haven Raiders’ president. Now, Raiders leaders say a proposed increase in field rental fees could threaten the program’s ability to keep kids on the field. Russ told News Channel 7 the organization has been practicing at A.L. Kinsaul Park since Hurricane Michael, after the Lynn Haven Sports Complex was heavily damaged. Russ said the team originally paid about $700 per season to use the field, with the cost eventually increasing to $1,200. The Raiders say their season is typically about four months long and that they use the field a few nights a week for a couple of hours at a time. Russ says they charge parents $250 per athlete on the football side and $50-75 more for cheerleading. “Our football operating budget annually ranges from $45,000 to $60,000. That’s what we have to come up with to be able to have a season,” said Russ. But at Tuesday’s commission meeting, Lynn Haven considered increasing the Raiders’ field rental fee to $11,400. “When they threw out that number, that’s a big increase on our budgeting. It shouldn’t cost close to $100,000 for a nonprofit organization to operate and give kids games. It shouldn’t cost that much, period,” said Russ. Lynn Haven City Manager Chris Lightfoot says staff was asked to look for ways to generate revenue for the city. “At previous commission meetings, we’ve talked about ways to generate revenue, and they [commissioners] have talked about facility rentals and the burden that that creates at the city,” said Lightfoot. “So our fee schedule showed 75 dollars per hour for our facility rental at the park, so that’s estimated out of the number of hours that they would have used throughout the season. So that’s how we arrived at the $11,400.” Hayes said that kind of increase isn’t something the Raiders can absorb. “We can’t stay afloat, we get by with just what we have, cause our biggest thing is we don’t want to turn any kid away,” Hayes said. At Tuesday’s Lynn Haven commission meeting, commissioners approved keeping the Raiders’ field rental fee at $1,200 for this season and said they will re-analyze the fee in April 2027 to determine what the rate will be for next season, based on costs and expenses. But Raiders leaders say they plan to keep pushing — and say the issue isn’t limited to Lynn Haven. “We needed to be heard, it’s a struggle, and to be honest with you we’re not the only program struggling, it’s actually a problem all across our area, we’re being priced out of everywhere we play, they don’t build the fields, but then one of two fields that they have they want to charge thousands of dollars to play on them,” one Raiders leader said. Russ said he believes local cities and counties should invest in more all-purpose fields and keep youth programs affordable. “I’ve watched million-dollar baseball fields get built left and right, I’ve watched every park in Lynn Haven get re-done, I’ve watched endless amounts of projects get done, I’ve watched them go through a whole corruption scandal, and we still don’t have a football field,” said Russ. The Lynn Haven commission is expected to revisit the Raiders’ field rental rate in April of next year. “It seems as though the city did not want the Raiders to continue to use the facilities, that’s not the case, however we have to do our due diligence in what the city’s actual cost is and what the fee schedule shows that they should be paying for the facility and utilize those numbers to present to the commission so that they can make the best decision,” said Lightfoot. The commission asked the Raiders to keep track of their expenses and present them next year. The Raiders say they’re already organizing—and they plan to pack the meeting room in April, so this doesn’t fade in the off-season. The Raiders will be having a car wash fundraiser this Sunday, July 19th, starting at 10:00 am at Innovations Financial Credit Union in Lynn Haven. To stay up to date on all the latest news as it develops, follow WJHG on Facebook, Instagram, and X (Twitter). Have a news tip or see an error that needs correction? Email [email protected]. Please include the article’s headline in your message. Keep up with all the biggest headlines on the WJHG News app, and check out what’s happening outside using the WJHG Weather app. Copyright 2026 WJHG. All rights reserved.