Parent committee joining forces with Waukon Park and Recreation for “Reviving the Fields” project to create safer baseball/softball fields, among other benefits
Initial Diamond level donors to “Reviving the Fields” project ... A couple of local donations at the Diamond level of giving ($5,000 or more) have been received in the early fundraising efforts for the “Reviving the Fields” project aimed at improving the baseball/softball fields at Waukon City Park, the Waukon Complex adjacent to the Fairgrounds, and near the school district bus barn. Donations continue to be accepted and can be made by contacting any member of the parent committee listed in the accompanying article. Pictured above at the presentation of the $5,000 donation made by Waukon State Bank toward the project are: Left to right - Front row: Janessa Weymiller, Brylee Willis, Kreigan Phipps, Gage Dotzler and Sam Weymiller representing some of the many youth who will benefit from the field improvements project; Back row: Little League Baseball/Softball Parent Committee representatives Dan Willis, Josh Phipps, Rachel Berns, Nicole Willis (also representing Waukon State Bank) and Jamie Phipps, along with Gina Curtin, Justin Sweeney and Dan Denk of Waukon State Bank. Pictured below at the Waukon City Park ball diamond that will be one of the fields improved by the project are numerous young ball players who will be part of the local youth benefiting from the field improvements project, along with Bruening Rock Products Project Manager Jesse Delaney. Bruening Rock Products will be donating half the cost of the materials being used in the field improvements project, an amount that propels them into the Diamond level of project fundraising sponsorship. Left to right - Front row: Briar Engrav, Evelynn Engrav, Irene Clarke, Evan Iverson, Joslyn Bernau, Barrett Gibbs and Vienna Gibbs; Back row: Bruening Rock Products Project Manager Jesse Delaney, Elsie Clarke, Belle Grimstad, Henry Clarke, Kreigan Phipps, Gage Dotzler, Vinny Gibbs, Weston Everman, Kason Beneke, Gavin Bernau, Logan Knox, Landon Kipp and Jack Bernau. Submitted photos.
Submitted photo.
The local Little League Baseball/Softball Parent Committee is partnering with the Waukon Park and Recreation Board of Directors and staff members to conduct a project focused on reviving the current baseball/softball fields at the Waukon City Park and the Waukon Complex adjacent to the Allamakee County Fairgrounds, while also creating a more usable field at the practice field area near the school district bus barn. The project has been set out in two phases, with the first phase focused on the playing surfaces of each field and the second, more long-term phase seeking to make additional renovations to other field and spectator amenities.
Phase I of the project is being called “Safety First” with a goal of raising $30,000 by the end of October of this year. That initial phase first got underway in late summer when some members of both the Little League Baseball/Softball Parent Committee and Waukon Park and Recreation met with Eric Ogden of Ogden Turf and Grading to assess the current condition of each of the three main fields, including the two adjacent fields at the Waukon Complex and the one field in Waukon City Park, as well as the field near the bus barn location on Fifth Street NW.
Ogden has been all over the world since 2009 consulting and providing services to baseball fields. He has been a turf manager at several baseball fields, including the Major League Baseball fields that are home to the Pittsburgh Pirates and Milwaukee Brewers.
Following Ogden’s assessment of the fields, the following recommendations have been made to improve the playing surfaces of the current fields, with all of them focused on the safety of the playing surface, and thus, those who play on the fields:
• Remove old, unsafe material, install new material, and laser grading for infields at all locations
• Clay bricks installed in both sides of the batters’ boxes to eliminate the deep holes that continue to form game after game
• Perform deep tine aerification and fertilization to produce a better growing environment for outfield grass at all locations
• Create a warning track to provide a safety feature for players as they approach outfield fences, while also providing an area for maintenance equipment to travel on in order to avoid driving over the grass field areas, if not necessary.
Upon receipt of Ogden’s recommendations, the parent committee and the Waukon Park and Recreation Department agreed to try and pursue completion of Phase I yet this fall, so that the playing surfaces will be ready for action in time for next season. Fundraising efforts have already begun to approach the initial $30,000 price tag for the “Safety First” Phase I of the project, but additional funds continue to be sought from any business, organization, family or individual willing to contribute.
Phase II of the project is entitled “Renovations and Upgrades”, with an additional fundraising goal of $35,000. That Phase II portion of the project will focus on additional amenities at each field, including fencing, netting, dugouts, backstops, shaded spectator areas, etc. Those aspects will not be physically undertaken until Phase I of the project is complete and additional fundraising measures through grants and donated matching funds are pursued.
Any donors to the overall project will be recognized, according to the following fundraising levels:
• Diamond - $5,000+
• Platinum - $2,500+
• Gold - $1,000+
• Silver - $500+
• Bronze - $100+
The benefits of such a project are seen as multi-faceted by members of the parent committee and the park and recreation department. They’ve outlined those benefits as follows:
• Safer fields for players, coaches and umpires
• Ability to host tournaments that will create revenue to put back into the fields to keep them up to date and maintained
• Creates inviting fields and fuels the economy by resulting in visiting players and spectators, in turn, supporting the local businesses while they are in town participating in tournaments and games.
Additional updates can be found on the project’s Facebook page by searching “Reviving of the Fields” Those with further questions can reach out to members of the parent committee, including Josh and Jamie Phipps, Ross and Morgan Weymiller, Shawn and Jordan Cunningham, David and Angela Gibbs, Travis and Breanne Bernau, Derek Dotzler and Rachel Berns, Ben and Kris Rausch, Dan and Nicole Willis, and Jeremy and Betsy Engrav.
