I've actually sat on the P&R board most of my parenting life. Yes we do have a soccer program and it usually gets decimated every time it's built up when people go in search of more hard core teams. While there is nothing inherently wrong with that (aside from them wanting to use the town fields for their private teams, which we usually shoot down or offer limited time), a lot of parents pull their kids from the town league thinking their kids are far more "elite" than they actually are...which is sad, because while those kids may develop more skills, they are not getting much playing time for the club. When our kids started travel, we actually kept them on the rec team also so they could be successful there while developing at travel practices. Town rec departments do try and workout training times with professional coaches but it only goes so far and those same coaches are connected to high priced private clubs.
BTW, yes there is cheap basketball, chess, drama club, baseball (Little League still works the way it used to in many areas), and football is actually the cheapest sport now. Sure you can do clinics on your own time, but football has somehow become the sport that doesn't discriminate. Who would have thought. I actually feel bad for your kids if you look down on the high school programs and what they do for ALL kids. Alexi Lalas actually expressed admiration for the high school programs and sadness for those not partaking.
I can't stress enough that I believe soccer is shooting itself in the foot in this country and they really need to look inward about how to properly develop. I know baseball (some) and other sports have gone down the same path, but you're not going to get the most exciting athletes or play the way they are doing things. Sports are supposed to stress work ethic and desire while acknowledging that physical size, innate talent, and luck are also factors. Somehow wallet has become a defining factor too.