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Marin Minor League Baseball Clears Final Hurdle

SAN JOSE (KCBS) – Minor league baseball is good to go in Marin County after a lawsuit that could have delayed the start of the San Rafael Pacifics first season was thrown out.

The Albert Park Neighborhood Alliance's suit sought to mandate an environmental study before the North American League team could play. But on Tuesday a Marin Superior Court judge ruled that "there is no reasonable possibility the approved activity will have a significant effect on the environment."

"What that means is that the opponents lawsuit has been thrown out, and we're free to go ahead and start playing baseball," said Mike Shapiro, president and general manager of the San Rafael Pacifics. "It certainly has hindered our ability to go out and convince potential sponsors that this was a good investment for their businesses."

KCBS' Anna Duckworth Reports:

The neighborhood alliance's attorney Dotty Lemieux said that her group is disappointed with the decision because she said a professional team's impact on the area will be far different than the recreational teams that use Albert Park.

"They will have a lot more people in attendance, more impacts in terms of traffic and noise in particular," said Lemieux.

The team expects to start its season in late May.

(Copyright 2012 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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