Recent storms left East Sacramento bocce ball club with destroyed facility
SACRAMENTO — A tight-knit community of bocce ball players is left wondering if they'll be able to start their season after the January storms turned their court into a disaster zone.
Romano Luccini is the facility coordinator for the East Portal Bocce Club in East Sacramento. The facility that houses the club is destroyed.
"It looks like a hurricane or a tornado came through here," Luccini said.
A massive tree tore through its roof during the New Year's Eve storm.
His club has 350 members. The nonprofit club manages the court, and the City of Sacramento owns the land at East Portal Park. Liability over clean-up remains unclear.
"So I'm still waiting to hear when the city, if they're going to clean it up, when that's going to be, or number two, will they allow us to start the process," Luccini said.
The City of Sacramento announced they've received 3,000 tree-related calls for service since the New Year's Eve storm, and that they may not be able to complete storm cleanup for six months.
"Yes, we get phone calls, 'What's going on? Are the courts going to be ready?' " Luccini said.
A court for this community to come together is still sidelined by the January storms. The bocce ball season starts in mid-March.
Of the 350 players, the oldest is 98 – Luccini's dad.
