It is springtime in Boulder. Just as they do every year, flowers are appearing, trees are budding, and kids are beginning to play baseball on evenings and weekends at Iris Fields.

But that final sign of spring may not be around in future years. This February, Boulder County announced its intention to sell a plot of land in North Boulder that includes Iris Fields.

Located just to the north of Iris Avenue, Iris Fields is comprised of four regulation Little League ball fields, two hitting cages and a snack shack. The southeast field and the northeast field both have old-fashioned scoreboards where kids often sit to watch games. For seventy years, this has been the home of the North Boulder Little League, in addition to hosting summer ball-clubs and tournaments. The fields have hosted thousands of Boulder area kids, including some that have gone on to play baseball professionally. David Bote, who currently plays in the Los Angeles Dodgers system, played at Iris Fields. As a 14-year-old native Boulderite, I have my own relationship with Iris Fields. I moved to North Boulder from Table Mesa when I was nine and perhaps the biggest benefit of the move was being just a few blocks from the baseball fields.

I remember my first opening day in North Boulder. I dressed in my Phillies uniform and stood on the southeast field watching Dinger — the Rockies’ mascot — throw out the first pitch. Then I joined the rest of my team running around the bases and heading over to the Snack Shack to buy candy.

Over the next few years, I didn’t just go to Iris Fields when I had practice or a game. I would go hours before my time on the field or stay hours after, watching other games, playing wiffle ball or just chatting with Doug, the long-time caretaker of the complex, or other ball players. For my Little League years, Iris Fields was like a second home to me.

Now, Boulder County wants to sell that second home to a developer. If the land is sold, Iris Fields will likely become housing. That would rob future Boulder kids of the chance to make springtime memories like mine and so many others. So it is not surprising that many of us with a connection to Iris Fields are organizing and attempting to halt the County’s development plans. Parents, old ballplayers and many others rallied to the effort. A petition to save Iris Fields has collected almost 3,000 signatures and a GoFundMe page has been started.

For my part, I am working towards saving Iris Fields my Capstone project for my eighth-grade studies. I am working to insert a base-running event into the North Boulder Little League Opening Day, featuring players from various eras of Iris Fields history. The event would demonstrate what is obvious to those of us who love the place: Iris Fields is more than just baseball fields — it’s a cornerstone of community for past, present and future generations.

Eli Rose lives in Boulder.