EDITORIAL:

Thank goodness.

A voice of reason.

Actually, five of them that make up the Costa Mesa City Council, with special kudos to Katrina Foley and Linda Dixon, the most ardent opponents of a slapdash plan that would have designated 28 of the city’s 30 parks as “passive.”

What exactly would that have meant?

Groups of nine or more would have been prohibited from organizing activities such as soccer, Frisbee and you name it at public parks such as Wakeham, Wimbledon and Estancia.

“I see this report as a colossal waste of taxpayer money and time,” Foley said of a Parks and Recreation Commission document on the issue.

Mind you, Public Works Director Peter Naghavi estimated that more than 100 hours of staff time had been spent considering the issue.

Can you say government waste? Pointless bureaucracy?

“I would hope that this whole thing is shredded,” Dixon said.

Amen.

Best we can remember, the idea took seed when the City Council designated Paularino Park, a popular locale for Latino soccer enthusiasts, as “passive.” We at the Daily Pilot criticized the council for its transparent attempt to rid the park of Latinos.

After all, how unsafe — the council cited safety concerns — is a soccer ball?

To take it a step further: Soccer, a game with roots in Europe and Latin America, is, perhaps, the most American of all activities, which is to say it’s good, wholesome family fun with little if any down side.

So extending the Paularino plan to 28 more parks in the city, leaving just two as “active,” would have been disastrous.

The Pilot’s headline the day after the vote read: Council: Let them play.

Good job, Foley, Dixon and company for letting outdoor enthusiasts do just that.