I mean, isn’t that literally one of the defining aspects of a sports field - that they are pointedly uniform according to some regulatory agency?
I’m feeling somewhat resentful that I can’t submit interesting portals but am forced to submit namby pampy crap like sports fields. I want portals, of course, but aren’t sports fields among the most boring that exist? And deliberately so?
Nobody is forcing you. I skip submitting a lot of candidates I don’t find interesting and I keep any personal bias or disinterest to myself when reviewing and generally accept sports fields as great places for exercising.
Sometimes being uniform is what makes it a great place for exercise, exploration, or being social.
Originally, this was the thinking. You nominated one portal (pre PoGo) to represent all the baseball fields, one to represent all the tennis courts, etc.
But since then, Niantic clarified that individual fields/courts are fine.
If you play in a baseball league, your schedule will show that you play Tuesday night at Suchnsuch Park at 8PM on Field 3. You can’t show up at field 1 or 5. or at Field 3 in Thatother Park. So that’s how I reason that they’re distinct.
I grant that they are separate. My point is that they are all the same as though they were mass produced.
We bounce other submissions on the basis that they are generic. But… “generic” is part of the definition of a sports field. So shouldn’t we be bouncing all sports fields?
Not all sports fields, courts, rinks, etc, are mass produced and follow the same standards. Soccer fields can come in a variety of sizes for different types of team play. Ice hockey rinks can vary in size, from the Olympic sheet size to the NHL standard. Baseball fuelds can vary in size, from smaller fields for younger players to larger for the majors; and even in the majors field size can vary.
And, of course, the materials used to create these can vary, too, as different companies may use different materials from a variety of sources to build the fields. Some areas might not even have a construction company that specializes in building sports fields and complexes, so they might just have a general construction company build instead. A small town might not even be able to afford a construction company, so they may ask the community for help in putting up a baseball backstop and bases, so then they do have a field for all in town to enjoy.
Places where sports can be played meet the exercise criteria, regardless if said field is similar to the others in the general area, like at a soccer or baseball field complex. They may also be good places to socialize, especially for the families/friends watching, even the fans. They’re distinct in that they bring people in the community out to enjoy the sport being played there, and in some small towns, it may be one of the few places that everyone gets together at a few times a week.
This is to me a non-issue.
You seem to be trying to create a reasoning that something being plain, and basic means that it is something that can be linked with being noteworthy.
The criteria are different and a submission just needs to meet one
The criteria of great place to exercise is all about the activity that the place encourages. The physical place is an anchor for that activity.
So trail markers are designed to look the same so you identify that route easily. But each route is different and the activity is about following the trail.
It’s essential for sports fields to confirm to a standard desgn. But the wayspot is important not because you stand there and admire the lines on the grass and the football posts 
but because you can be active with a specific sport.
So there is no comparison to draw between the criteria.
Honestly and sincerely, I’m just trying to understand the current rules. There’s a lot of hypocrisy and contradiction involved and not a lot of clarity.
Eg, why is it that generic sports fields qualify under “exercise” and excuse them from being generic but generic businesses that are “social” centers don’t?
Your argument that it doesn’t have to be novel because it’s an exercise center doesn’t appear to hold generally. Even if it’s true in some cases it doesn’t help me much as I still don’t know when it is or isn’t true.
When nominating a business, you have to tell reviewers why it’s a great place to be social, exercise, and/or explore. Some small towns may see their hardware store as a local social hub, because it may be one of the few places in town that you could possibly see everyone at some point in the day.
But just because you could run into someone at the hardware store and chat with them for a minute doesn’t mean it’s a great place to be social, unlike a locally-owned coffee shop or restaurant. The hardware store may not have any seating, the employees there may be more focused on stocking the shelfs or ringing up customers, whereas the local coffee shop creates an environment where one can be social with others, having seating, quiet chill music playing, and food/drink that entice people to stay longer.
I don’t think I would ask someone to meet up with me at a hardware store, unless we need something for a project we’re working on, but I may ask if they want to meet up at a sports field for some practice or to watch a game.
If you can show that it is a social center, then it is eligible. I usually have to appeal these.
Aren’t all food and/or beverage places social centers?
I meant that if it is a place that is especially important to the community, rather that just a place to grab some food. I see that we have different ideas of what constitutes a “social center.”
A chain restaurant usually does not meet criteria, as there may be several more of that same restaurant in that area. You may meet up with someone at a Starbucks, but being there may be several to choose from to meet up at, it makes it a generic business, a place that isn’t unique to the area. There’s a Starbucks being built in my neighborhood, but there are also 2 that are less than a mile away.
I don’t know if you’ve read the generic/non-generic business criteria clarification, but almost all of what we’ve noted about them are laid out there. It even notes that the submitter needs to prove that the business meets criteria, so a good description and supporting info are important.
Yes, I have read that, thanks.
It looks to me like that same logic should apply to baseball diamonds. Several in the area. All alike. Produced and maintained by the same organization. Not unique to the area. One is as good as another. “Generic business”.
Not all fields are alike, like I mentioned earlier. Below is a softball field in a very small town I nominated and got approved this past summer. It’s a place I know well, as I often visited to watch the rec league team play games, and visit with others in the town. The team and the bar that sponsors the team built the backstop and field, and that backstop is quite old. It’s mainly a wooden frame, with metal fencing attached. It’s the only one in this tiny town, and is quite a social hub in the summer.
Also, this is what is noted about complexes with several fields in the Sports Fields clarification:
So, if a baseball complex has multiple fields, they usually will have a number or letter assigned to them, or even have their own names that come from sponsorships or dedications. Take this ball field complex as an example: all fields have a number, and the baseball only fields also have names from sponsors or dedicated to those who were a part of the baseball community (Helling Field is named after former MLB playger Rick Helling, Starion Field is sponsored by Starion Financial).
By trying to compare criteria against each other you are trying to compare different things - apples and pears - so it doesnt follow.
This is why I’ve always felt that chain theaters and gyms should all be accepted as well. They are just as good, if not better, at encourages socialization and exercise as their local or more unique counterparts. As an avid movie goer, I love finding chains I recognize when I’m on the road.
Chain theaters and chain fitness centers are eligible, it’s just that the community doesn’t always accept them because they are chains. You can socialize at a chain theater, and a fitness center is a great place to get some exercise and maybe socialize with others.
Chain theaters are more likely to be accepted, as the ones where I live have Wayspots, but chain fitness centers tend to be a little harder and might have to go through appeals.
