Broken Arrow Youth Sports gives kids from kindergarten to 12th grade the chance to play tackle football, flag football, cheerleading, pom, and lacrosse.
Since 1984, the group’s goal has been to give local kids a safe, fun, and competitive place to play sports.
Executive Director Chad Lott has been involved with the program for 39 years and has served as its full-time leader since 2015. He says the kids’ energy and positivity make it a great experience, and he believes youth sports help kids learn important skills like making friends, leading, and finding mentors.
“I mean, you get to see both sides of it, being developed by good men, good ladies, and good leaders,” Lott said. “And especially in football, those kids learn to fight through adversity and get up when you’re knocked down, and that is a learned life skill.”
He says the city has helped the program last by working with teams and leaders to make youth sports successful.
“Pretty much all of our teams are Tigers from kindergarten to 12th,” Lott said. "And, with that, having all this here in Broken Arrow provides us with that sense of community. We see that when others come in and get to see what our community is about and how we represent it.”
One of the group’s most successful events is the Sooner Classic.
“That brings in youth football teams from about five or six states, and some as far away as Arizona,” Lott said.
Broken Arrow’s central location in the country is also a plus. Teams from Arkansas, Missouri, or Oklahoma City can meet here and play on neutral ground.
Broken Arrow Youth Sports plays at Nienhuis Park at 3201 N. 9th St., one of the city’s newer sports parks. In February, the city opened two new turf fields, paid for by the 2018 General Obligation Bond. Now, the park has four turf fields, two natural grass fields, scoreboards, press boxes, a PA system, and stadium seating that is accessible to everyone.
Still, more updates are needed to keep Nienhuis Sports Complex on par with other facilities in the area. These improvements could happen if voters pass Proposition 8 on April 7, which aims to upgrade the city’s sports and public spaces.
Nienhuis Sports Complex needs the following improvements:
LED Field Lighting System $2,150,000
Parking Lot Repaving $100,000
Drainage Improvements $70,000
Netting $30,000
Entry Plaza Concrete Upgrades $200,000
Security Lighting in Parking Lot $250,000
New Restroom Near Practice Fields $500,000
Total Nienhuis-Football and Lacrosse $3,300,000
Proposition 8 differs from the other seven bond proposals because it would be paid for by a temporary 0.5 percent sales tax increase dedicated solely to sports facility improvements.
If it passes, the tax will start on July 1, 2026, and end on June 30, 2031. All those funds would go only to the projects listed in Proposition 8. To see the full list of improvements for Indian Springs Sports Complex, Nienhuis Sports Complex, Challenger Sports Complex, and Arrowhead Sports Complexes, visit BuildOurFutureBA.org/Prop8-SportsFacilities.
Lott believes Proposition 8 is important because tax support for youth sports facilities generates more community benefits, such as increased tourism and improved local facilities.
He encourages everyone in Broken Arrow to vote this April.
“When you vote, you give your say, and every vote does matter,” Lott said. “You never know when it’s going to come down to what passes and what doesn’t. And so, voting for improvements is definitely, in my mind, a better way to go.”
