On one side of town, a stopped up toilet leaves an inch of water on a bathroom floor. A few miles away, a busy schedule leads to a full parking lot and a traffic headache.

Back across town, the schedule is light. So light, there’s no need to open a concession stand. A couple days later, the fields are busy and practice space is at a premium.

Taken individually, these are but a few of the common issues any baseball league would expect to deal with over the course of a season. For the Vicksburg Warren Athletic Association, formed when the old Vicksburg Baseball Association and Culkin Athletic Association joined forces last winter, they’ve been a footnote to its first season.

“I thought the season overall has gone really well. We got a lot of participation from people that would not have been in the league otherwise,” VWAA vice president David McHan said. “Obviously, some of the logistical issues were a headache, but there’s not a lot the league can do from that aspect.”

While the number of registered baseball players increased by nearly 25 percent, a series of minor problems over the course of the spring led to complaints from parents.

First, a thunderstorm on April 4 damaged Bazinsky Field. The VWAA does not play games there, but does use its parking lot. While Bazinsky was undergoing repairs, that lot was closed and parents were forced to park at adjacent softball fields and even at The Home Depot, a couple hundred yards away and down a hill.

The lack of parking also led to traffic jams during changeovers, when one set of games ended and another was getting ready to start. The snarls were similar to those at major tournaments such as the Governor’s Cup. Some parents grumbled, while others took it in stride.

“We play at a lot of tournaments, and it’s the same everywhere,” said Torri Shelton, whose husband Tim is a VWAA board member. Their son, Jack, plays for the 6-year-olds’ Vicksburg Billies tournament team. “I don’t hear any kids complaining about having to walk.”

Most parent complaints centered around the Culkin Athletic Complex, which was used as a practice facility and for 7- and 8-year-olds’ leagues this season. Coaches were upset with a lack of available practice time, despite the prearranged schedule the VWAA drew up before the season.

Pat Chambers, coach of the 11-year-olds’ Vicksburg Pirates tournament team, said some of that was simply adjusting to the massive influx of new teams and players. The VBA had around 600 children last year, and Culkin had about 200. The VWAA has around 750.

“Where you’re hearing complaints, it’s growing pains and people who aren’t used to this much baseball going on,” Chambers said.

Other issues dealt with the spectators’ experience.

Because of the light league schedule – four games on Monday, another four on Tuesday, and nothing the rest of the week – the concession stand was rarely open. In April, vandals stuffed a Gatorade bottle into a pipe, causing the women’s bathroom to flood.

Garbage also went uncollected for several days and some storm damage was not fixed. One outfield sign hung low from a scoreboard, while several outfield wind screens appeared damaged. To some longtime Culkin parents, it brought on feelings of neglect and a longing for the old days when a weekend of hard work could take care of most problems.

“I wish we could go back to the old way, to be honest. I wish it could be split up,” said Jana Wade, whose son Mason plays on the 11-year-olds’ Vicksburg Bulldogs tournament team. “It just seemed better and Mason was a lot happier.”

McHan said a lot of the issues at Culkin were caused by the different entities that run it and Halls Ferry Park. Culkin is owned and operated by the Warren County Board of Supervisors. Halls Ferry is operated by the City of Vicksburg and the Aquila Group, which has plans to build a $40 million baseball complex in the city – the facility that spawned the Culkin-VBA merger.

Dealing with a different group for each facility led to some communication problems that were resolved as the season went along, McHan said.

“As soon as we heard about that, we got someone out there,” McHan said.

Still, some of the old guard from Culkin were frustrated over what they perceived as a slight to the complex they had taken care of for so many years.

“We’ve had garbage running over, the bathroom is disgusting. I’m still confused as to who is responsible. If it’s going to be the parents, then somebody needs to tell us,” said Donna Davis, whose 8-year-old son Spencer played at Culkin the last two years and in the VWAA this spring. “To me, I take it personally that my child does not matter that much.”

Ironically, despite all of the issues outside the fence, the new league seems to be a success inside it. The VWAA has put together a number of new tournament teams for the summer, which are helping to patch the old VBA-Culkin divide.

“It may have been a year too soon because of the places to practice. But it’s already benefited the whole town,” said Tim Lampkin, coach of the Vicksburg Mustangs 11-year-olds’ tournament team. “The other night we had four players from the Red Sox sitting in our dugout. They just came in, sat down, and started talking to our guys. You never would have seen that before.”

A number of off-the-field issues are expected to sort themselves out when Aquila builds its complex. The original plan, to build on the site of Halls Ferry Park, has been scrapped because of a long environmental study. The new plan calls for a facility on Fisher Ferry Road.

McHan said that from an organizational standpoint the VWAA board is also learning from this season. The merger was agreed upon in January, and opening day was in early March. That left little time for drawing up bylaws, finding volunteers, and figuring out the best way to run things with an entirely new staff.

Having an entire offseason to talk about what worked and what didn’t, improve communication among everyone from players to parents to board members, and try new things should make 2009 run smoother, he said.

“I can tell you we have a lot of work to do. I won’t fool you and tell you everything went perfectly,” McHan said. “Some of it was growing pains and some was we didn’t have people step up and volunteer like we needed. But that could have been the same case last year.”