VISTA —— A seasonlong road trip for Vista American Little League teams may be extended through next spring because of the continued closure of the league's home field for soil and water testing.

French Field, a 10-acre park used by Vista area youth baseball and softball teams for more than 20 years, has been closed since January pending the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board's review of soil and water tests.

"Right now, we're trying to make plans for another location for next season," said Vista Parks and Recreation Director Cathy Brendel. "Our main concern is just finding a place for the kids to play."

The move means that the 22 teams and 285 players that used the grounds for Little League games and practices will have to get used to life on the road.

Brendel said the teams will probably remain at Breeze Hill Park, which was their temporary home this season, though the city may ask Oceanside to allow the teams to play on fields in that city, based on the number of players living in Oceanside.

League President John Lopez estimated Wednesday that almost 40 percent of players were Oceanside residents.

The field was closed to test for lead in the soil and groundwater from a creek on and around the property.

The grounds were home to a county landfill used from 1944 to 1967 as a disposal and waste-burning site for trash from North County.

After the landfill closed in 1967, the cities of Oceanside and Vista became part owners of the property.

Vista later sold its stake to Oceanside, which now owns the property and leases it to Vista for use —— as a ballpark.

The two cities and the county are embroiled in a three-way legal battle over which one should bear responsibility for the site and testing.

The dispute began last year when the county, which ran the dump, filed a lawsuit seeking contributions from the two cities to pay for testing. Both cities then filed cross-complaints.

Testing was ordered in 2002 by the state Water Resources Control Board to determine whether any waste at the landfill had seeped into groundwater in areas around the dump and nearby creek. The testing was required of a long list of inactive landfills throughout the state.

The state ordered the study by San Diego County and the cities of Oceanside and Vista to learn whether waste burned at the long-inactive county dump on Lee Drive is leaking into nearby Loma Alta Creek. It was completed in April at a cost of about $300,000.

The cost was split among the cities and the county, though funding for the testing and legal fees will be covered by Chubb and Traveler's Insurance companies, which represented the three municipalities at the time the landfill was operational, officials said.

Oceanside city officials did not return phone calls Wednesday.

Preliminary testing that revealed the higher lead levels was ordered by the state board as part of an examination of closed landfills.

Pete Grover, Vista's assistant city attorney, said in May that some cleanup measures may be needed at the site, but that the extent of work needed would be determined when the water-quality control board completes a review of the test results.

City testing completed this spring covered a gridlike pattern of 31 sections of the field and surrounding areas, most of which came back well within normal limits.

The initial results for lead came back below 100 parts per million, less than the maximum of 255 parts per million deemed safe for playgrounds, according to Environmental Protection Agency standards.

Testing on slopes near the creek, though, showed levels of lead at 250 parts per million in one area, and 500 parts per million in another, nearly double the limit allowed by government regulations.

The city said it decided to keep the field closed for additional testing —— at a cost of up to $50,000 —— to determine whether the field is safe for use by Little League teams. The city of Oceanside undertook additional testing at the site early this summer.

City officials said there has been no indication that any health problems have been caused by lead exposure on or near the field.

"We are not aware of any health problems or injuries reported, but would rather be safe and keep the field closed as a precaution," Brendel said.

Tom Deak, senior deputy county counsel, said that the county was not involved in the decision to conduct additional testing and will not play a role in any decision to reopen the grounds.

"The parties (in the lawsuit) are cooperating as well as can be expected, but there have been no significant developments," Deak said Wednesday.

The lawsuit had been scheduled for a June hearing, but that has been postponed while Oceanside seeks information on other parties who may bear responsibility for the landfill, Deak said.

Contact staff writer Anne Riley-Katz at 631-6622 or ariley-katz@nctimes.com.