PRSR AGENDA MEMO 03-13-1996 - Laserfiche WebLink

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• \. SAINT PAUL PIONEER PRESS 1:::. ...7._______` MONDAY,JANUARY 29, 1996 G.-3@ . SUBURBS -, . Lighting ball .fields •could relieve demand • Mendota Heights fields — such as the one at Grass vice community park with four studies options for Junior High — are out of commis- ball fields laid out in a pinwheel sion for construction. design, with all four home bases in i growing leagues "We are experiencing a ball- the center of the field. Lights to field availability crisis," Batcheld- flood that area with sufficient • DON AHERN STAFF WRITER er said. "We have more users than brightness for adult softball would ball fields. There are about 1,200 cost from $150,000 to $250,000, Is night softball at Mendakota to 1,400 youths in the city's Little Batchelder said. Park worth oftbag out as much Mendakota as League programs, both boys and One of the considerations is how Park worth for lighting the playing girls from T-ball to baseball and those lights will affect nearby res- g g P y g softball traveling teams. And as idential areas to the south and fields? And if so, who should pay far as the adult leagues go, we west, even though the city would for it? have 400 to 500 adult players." require that the lights be turned Those are questions that Mendo- There are seven adult softball off by 10 p.m. to Heights' elected and appointed fields in Mendota Heights. Eight . ill officials will be wrestling 'with neighborhood parks have Little over the next few weeks. League-size fields, he added. ��We are experiencing The Parks and Recreation Com- One option might be to acquire a ball-field mission will get a staff analysis of new ball fields, but it takes 10 " options Feb. 13, the same day its acres to build a youth complex, availability crisis. scheduled to make a recommenda- Batchelder said. "In Mendota KEVIN BATCHELDER tion to the Mendota Heights City Heights we are approaching build- CITY ADMINISTRATOR Council. The council will decide out," which means there's little' Feb. 20 what to do with the park undevelo ped p ro rt h The cit at -Dodd Road and Mendakota � y lef� e said. y passed a $3.4 million Drive. Although lighting is costly, it referendum in 1989 to develop the The problem, said cit adminis- would actually be cheaper to.light softball program and existing y existing fields than to buy new fields. trator Kevin Batchelder, is that fields,.he added.Lights would al- "We will probably not use pub- the city's 4-year-old adult softball low adult teams to play later at lic funds again," Batchelder said. leagues are growing faster than night, freeing up daylight time for "We're looking at other sources the availability of playing fields. Little League teams. such as the special park fund lac- And a few of the 38 fields in Men- "That would allow us to more .cumulated from subdivision devel- dota Heights and surrounding ar- fully utilize existing fields," opment fees), user fees, or contri- eas that have been used in the past Batchelder said. • butions from the leagues or public will no longer be available. Some Mendakota Park is a full-ser- 'at large." III