By Cecilia Nasmith
Neither rain, forest-fire smoke nor shipping delays could stop Cramahe Township's Parks and Recreation Department from doing the work to bring minor hardball back to the township.
A press release from Manager of Parks, Recreation and Facilities Chris Curwin tells the tale that began with their turning the wish expressed by local residents into action items that brought in actual registrations.
“The only problem was, Cramahe did not have a field to accommodate Peewee and Midget age groups,” the release said.
Following Minor Ball's presentation to staff, Councillor Joel Schriver and the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee, research was done, a staff report went before council and unanimous approval was given to begin diamond renovations.
They moved the outfield fence back 75 feed, adding 60 feed of playing surface to the infield. And infield work involved removing 24 inches of soil and clay, then bringing in new material. Twelve inches of subbase was added for proper drainage, six inches of sports sand topped with six inches of Washington Ball Mix.
“'Big O' was added to the infield fence for safety, foul poles and dugouts were painted, outfield distance signage was posted, trees were trimmed up, bleachers were repaired, a painting mound was brought in, and Colborne Minor Baseball cleaned up and repaired the canteen facility,” Curwin listed.
It took three weeks of work with occasional assistance from the Public Works department, he added.
“It was a pleasure to watch everyone come together to accomplish a common goal. I thank you all for your hard work, pride and dedication to this project,” he stated.
“I would like to mention that these renovations were brought to a sports field contractor out of the GTA and, when it was mentioned that we wanted to have children playing on this field this season we were laughed at.”
Cramahe got the last laugh June 9, when the Colborne Hawks played their first game on their newly renovated hardball diamond.
Curwin added special thanks to Megan and Jason Walton, Rebecca Bailey and all the volunteers and coaches who volunteer their time in a nightly basis to make Minor Baseball happen in Cramahe Township.
