Another Resident Comes Out In Support Of Roberts Stadium & Replanting The Back Lot

In the Opinion section in the Evansville Courier & Press today, local resident Martha Crosley came out in support of studying possible reuse options for Roberts Stadium and returning the back lot to forest. She also suggested that Roberts Stadium could possibly be a swimming center for the EVSC and other indoor swimming clubs. I thank her greatly for her article. Here it is...

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2010/nov/28/options-still-abound-for-old-stadium-property/

My thanks to Evansville City Council members Dan McGinn and Dan Adams for co-sponsoring a resolution that essentially states that everyone needs to put the brakes on regarding Roberts Stadium and the Convention & Visitors Bureau's proposed baseball/softball complex.

This stand by some members of the council opens the possibility of a win-win for the CVB and citizens of Evansville.

Those who want to have the new ball fields are welcome to have them using land that is adjacent to Goebel Soccer Fields. It is still available for sale and the last figure I heard for the property was $1.2 million, a lesser figure than the cost of razing Roberts Stadium.

Those who want Wesselman Park to remain a peaceful family park and those neighbors who value a quiet neighborhood may have that also.

This concept leaves the Roberts Stadium issue open to lots of possibilities. For example, Dan Adams of the City Council stated that Roberts Stadium could be used for a natatorium for swim meets for all the schools since high schools in the area need such a facility. This would be something that Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp. Superintendent Vincent Bertram could back for his whole school system and not just one school (for example, a ball field for Bosse High School).

This and many other ideas are possibilities if Roberts Stadium remains standing and if a new engineering study is done — not to find out if high-rigging concerts can be performed there as was done before, but to judge the building on structural soundness for other uses.

For any future use a large portion of the back parking lot should be removed and planted with native trees to buffer the preserve. The floor should also be filled in to the level that would end the constant pumping of water.

I believe that Martha said what everyone is thinking: Reuse Roberts Stadium & Replant The Back Lot.

Martha had a great point when she brought up the fact that we need to perform a study that actually focuses on reusing the stadium as something other than a modern arena. The great thing about it, is that I've already gotten a quote from Ripken Design of $32,500 for the reuse study. This is very affordable and wouldn't break the budget.

I know EVSC Superintendent Vincent Bertram has expressed his reluctance in replanting the back lot because he feels that this would inconvenience those who use the EVSC fields directly east of it, but if you look on Google Maps, you will notice that there is another access point to the fields from Division Street as well as a parking lot for the Indiana National Guard.

Yes, there will probably need to be a deal worked out with the National Guard for access to the National Guard's parking lot or another parking lot constructed next to it, but I don't think it's too far out of the realm of possibilities due to the fact that those fields don't draw thousands of people at a time. If worse came to worst, we could always leave a handful of parking spots intact on the back lot with a fence separating them from the forest (which will hopefully be a botanical garden).

While I disagree on the alternative location for the ball fields (it's got to be Kleymeyer Park), I think Martha hit the nail on the head with this article. We must do two things on that lot...

1. Reuse Roberts Stadium

2. Replant the back lot

How Low Can The EVCB Go?

Today, the EVCB announced they had cut $4.5 million from the proposed ball field project that they want to occupy the land that Roberts Stadium currently sits on. Although $4.5 million has been cut, the plan still calls for Roberts Stadium to be demolished.

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2010/nov/23/evansville-visitors-bureau-reduces-ball-fields-bud/
I honestly didn't think this plan could get any worse until today. The amazing thing about the cuts is that only the good parts of this project are being cut and some of the cuts aren't really cuts. This project has hit an all-time low!

One of the main parts that actually will be cut is the removal of the back parking lot east of Roberts Stadium. This, quite frankly, is the only part of land on the lot that needs to go. It needs to be returned to nature with Roberts Stadium (which would be a botanical garden, an indoor rec center, or indoor water park) serving as the buffer between Wesselman Woods and the city. Earlier this week, the Courier & Press said one of the reasons they like this project is because it has a great buffer zone. Well, now the parking lot is still going to go all the way up the woods on the eastern side. Do they still support this project?

According to the C&P...

Dunn also said Convention & Visitors Bureau is looking at postponing the construction of shelter houses, picnic tables and other structures that were proposed under the original ball-fields plan. Dunn said the delay will let the bureau concentrate on building the eight fields themselves.

At this point, why does anyone believe building 8 basic fields with few amenities is a good idea anymore? The thing that amazes me about this project is that I have shown the mayor in person and emailed the EVCB's website a copy of this link (http://www.bigleaguedreams.com/corporate/park-development) which states clear as day that this organization builds their ball fields with no taxpayer money, not even for maintenance. Not only that, they build replica fields of vintage MLB ballparks that would give us a competitive advantage. All they need to do is make a simple phone call to Big League Dreams Sports Parks. That is what we need to do, not build a dull and bland sports complex that has nothing special about it except its price tag.

Dunn then said...

“We cannot sacrifice the quality of the playing surface,” he said. “We refuse to do that.”

What quality playing surface? Dunn said at the last County Council presentation that they decided to pass on the specialized turf because it cost several million dollars which was out of their budget. These fields are bland and dull and they will give visitors few reasons to visit them. If Dunn's fields looked like these http://www.bigleaguedreams.com/replica-fields I would understand why he didn't want to cut costs but they don't.

Even worse, this project really doesn't cut the full $4.5 million from the budget, it just does some accounting tricks with the $1.5 million Roberts Stadium demolition cost...

Dunn said the visitors bureau’s new budget assumes that the city will pay for the demolition of Roberts Stadium, which is estimated to cost $1.5 million. Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel said last week that the city would look to pay for that expense out of its 2012 budget, possibly by using Casino Aztar as the revenue source.

To me, this is absolutely, positively unbelievable. The mayor and the EVCB will stop at nothing to knock Roberts Stadium down. If the mayor worked on saving Roberts Stadium as much as he worked on finding funding for its demise, we'd probably have a Taj Mahal out there. The purpose of the Casino Aztar revenue is to improve the city, not destroy it. We need to treat that money with extreme caution. It's the only money we have that will make a significant dent on our tourism and quality of life problem.

The Casino Aztar money should be used for projects like a new downtown ballpark, redigging the Wabash & Erie Canal, and building on the riverfront; not demolishing Roberts Stadium. Oklahoma City turned their city around with their development money (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolitan_Area_Projects) , Evansville needs to do the same.

If the Vanderburgh County Council is genuinely concerned about the amount of funds this project would take from the Innkeepers Tax, than shouldn't they be concerned that voting yes for this project will mean $13 million PLUS $1.5 million from another tax base?

Lastly, the mayor reiterated why he wants Roberts Stadium demolished...

Weinzapfel reasoned that the cost of keeping Roberts standing but unused — which is estimated to top $300,000 a year — would exceed the cost of demolition after the passage of six years.

Again, why just mothball it and not put the Home Show there where it would have plenty of room to put booths outside (not to mention other small events)? Why not conduct the study for $32,500 to see what possibilities there are for Roberts Stadium? Why not host a forum to discuss Roberts Stadium reuse options (there are 9 on this blog alone) instead of just proclaiming Roberts Stadium useless without any basis for that assertion? Is this really enough reasoning to waste $1.5 million from the Casino Aztar funds?

Just when you think this project has hit rock bottom, a new detail comes out that makes it even worse. How Low Can The EVCB Go?

Save Roberts Stadium Is Forever Etched In The New Arena

As a diehard fan of stadiums, ballparks, and arenas of the past, present, and future, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to sign the final beam that will be placed in the new arena downtown. Although it rained quite hard that day, I made sure I got off work in time to sign it. However, I didn't just sign my name on the beam, I left a special message on it.

With the permanent ink sharpie in my hand, I wrote, "Jordan Baer Save Roberts Stadium." Yes, I believe that the arena situation downtown is a completely different situation than what we're facing out at Roberts Stadium. So why would I write "Save Roberts Stadium," on the beam?

Unfortunately, there will come a time when the new arena is facing the same fate that Roberts Stadium is facing right now. I fear it will be sooner than later due to the new arena not being built for the future. It will only hold 10,000-11,000 seats and it is being built on what is believed to be only a 12 foot water table. Expanding it down the road will be quite expensive. I hope the city makes the right decision to consider expanding it instead of demolishing it. I also hope the city considers expansion of it within the next 5-10 years so that the city has an arena big enough to attract the NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament.

Nonetheless, I hope that when the city faces this dilemma, they will look to this beam and be reminded of how the situation played out with Roberts Stadium. If the arena is demolished, I hope they will save this beam to see that history had sadly repeated itself. Lastly, I hope it will show them to build sports venues and buildings correctly so that demolition of historic buildings isn't needed as often.

To my surprise, between the time that I signed the beam on Tuesday and the time I returned on Wednesday, somebody decided to take a sharpie and black out my message. Truth be told, I really don't want to know who did that. I think it would amaze us all if we really knew. Luckily, that person never guessed I would return the next day to rewrite it on there. Not only did I rewrite it back on the beam, I wrote it twice!

Whether it's demolished or preserved, Roberts Stadium will now be remembered on the new arena!

Another Disappointing Article From The Courier & Press

First they came out with a disappointing article against high speed rail, then another in support of demolishing Roberts Stadium, and now they have come out with yet another article calling for the Wesselman Park ball fields to be brought back up in front of the County Council.

Here's the article released today by the C&P:

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2010/nov/21/the-ball-fields-the-issue-officials-look-at-cost/

Just like when they quoted an I-69 Chamber of Commerce yes man on high speed rail, the Courier & Press has decided to base their opinion off people who have no use for Roberts Stadium, thus they have no plans for it despite the many options there are for reusing the facility and maintaining 54 years worth of valuable history.

First the article says...

Despite the concerns of some residents that this is not a good location for such a facility, sitting so close to Wesselman Woods, it strikes us as a more than suitable location, so near multiple other recreation facilities and with a large piece of property that could be turned into ball fields.

Really? Does the C&P honestly believe that this a much better location than Kleymeyer Park? How can the C&P justify that? With Kleymeyer Park, we would be able to...

- Capture methane gas from the landfill underneath it to reduce emissions and produce AN ADDITIONAL REVENUE SOURCE for the ball fields
- Work with the EPA to clean up Pigeon Creek (See: http://saverobertsstadium.blogspot.com/2010/11/red-rover-red-rover-please-send-epa-on.html )
- Build Vintage MLB Ball fields like these http://www.bigleaguedreams.com/replica-fields ( which by the way, that organization does it at no taxpayer expense http://www.bigleaguedreams.com/corporate/park-development )in an area that already has a baseball image
- Evansville would be to girl's softball what Omaha is to the College World Series
- Revitalize a dilapidated park that hasn't gotten its fair share of funding ( Kleymeyer is in worse shape than Wesselman Park)
- Revitalize the First Ave, North Main St., and Diamond Ave areas.
- It's one road and the Lloyd Expressway to the eastside (same as Wesselman Park)
- It will bring more visitors to the future downtown hotel
- It is next to basketball courts, a swimming pool, and the greenway while also being in the same complex as Walter's Golf-N-Fun which fits perfectly with this project
- It stood a better chance of getting Recovery Zone Bonds ( Although that doesn't matter anymore)
- It is far away from resident homes

The C&P then makes their editorial worse by stating...

Wesselman Woods would still be buffered from the Roberts Stadium site by the Wesselman Par 3 golf course. That will not change. What would change would be the elimination of acres of paved parking lot and a large, unneeded public building.

An unneeded building? What reason does the C&P have for this belief? I have given 9 uses for this historic (yes I said historic) building on this blog. A study has already shown Evansville could support an indoor water park resort inside Roberts Stadium. City Councilman Dr. Dan Adams has stated that Evansville is also in dire need of a new indoor swimming pool and wants it to be at Roberts Stadium. I agree. Furthermore, we currently have no indoor center for biking, jogging, and walking on our greenway. What good is the greenway when it rains and snows if there's no indoor section attached to it?

The perfect buffer between the woods and the city is Roberts Stadium itself. Replant the back lot with trees, place a botanical garden or indoor waterpark with an indoor greenway inside Roberts Stadium and put a fence between the golf course and Roberts Stadium. The perfect buffer!

In an article last Friday the C&P asked Mayor Weinzapfel, and Mayor Weinzapfel only, about reusing Roberts Stadium (This article is cited in the C&P opinion as well).

Here's the article: http://www.courierpress.com/news/2010/nov/19/city-council-members-call-halt-ball-fields-project/

Weinzapfel said he has listened to many suggestions for the reuse of Roberts, but only will take them seriously if they come with financing plans. So far, no one he knows of has devised a practical means of paying for the continued operation of the stadium, he said.

In the circumstances, demolition is the best option, he said.

The mayor is the ONLY person the C&P interviewed for that article. The only studies this city administration has done on Roberts Stadium (besides the indoor water park study that appears to have been discarded) are studies that focus solely on using Roberts Stadium as a renovated arena which I address here: http://saverobertsstadium.blogspot.com/2010/11/rumors-of-roberts-stadiums-demise-has.html.

I have a group willing to study proper reuses for Roberts Stadium for a mere $32,500 ( in contrast Roberts' demolition cost has gone from $1.25 million to $1.5 million). I have presented this group as well as my ideas to the mayor upon which he has not gotten back to me on. Why does the C&P think ignoring this study and not researching these ideas before supporting demolition is the proper way to go?

This begs the question: How can the C&P and the mayor state that Roberts Stadium is an unneeded building and must be demolished when they have studied, researched, or tried to implement ZERO reuse alternatives other than a renovated arena and ignored a water park resort study?

I have great respect for the C&P. I have started a group Tri-State Tomorrow in an effort to "lift the pal," from Evansville. This group was put together after being inspired by a C&P article.

However, I really believe they need to change their editorial opinion process. They need to interview and consider both sides, and I believe they should use the power they have to put together a citizen's panel and host a town hall meeting(s) to gather ideas on what to do with Roberts Stadium. That would be an editorial opinion I could get behind!

Making The Case For The NBDL

Although saving Roberts Stadium is my main concern, I believe the Roberts Stadium situation is a three pronged battle. The three prongs are...

1. Saving Roberts Stadium & finding a proper use for it that will keep it intact and satisfy everyone involved.

2. Finding the perfect location and design for the ball fields to make sure they are the best fields in the U.S. I believe Kleymeyer Park is the best location and these are the best fields: http://www.bigleaguedreams.com/replica-fields

3. Making sure the new arena has the proper amount of dates filled to make it profitable. I also want to bring the best teams and events possible to the new arena. If Roberts Stadium is kept as an events center where it would host events like the Tri-State Home Show, the Circus, and other events that need more parking lot space or more staging space than the new arena, I pledge to find enough teams and events to fill the empty dates in the new arena vacated by the events that would be staying at Roberts Stadium. (at no taxpayer expense).

I've talked and talked and talked about the first two prongs of this battle on this blog, but I haven't dove into just what I'd like to accomplish at the new arena.

When I made the post "An Open Invitation to the Mayor and City Officials," I said I would like to get...

1. The Bluecats back
2. USI to play some games downtown
3. NCAA tournament games
4. A NBDL team

It should seem pretty cut and dry why I'd like to get the Bluecats back, bring the NCAA tournaments to town, and bring USI downtown for some games, but what is the NBDL and why am I so passionate about bringing it here?

For those of you that don't know, the NBDL, which stands for National Basketball Developmental League, is the newly formed league that is the farm league for the NBA (National Basketball Association). It is basketball's version of what AAA,AA, & A baseball is to MLB, and what leagues such as the CHL (Icemen's league) are to the NHL. The league consists of drafted and undrafted players who are trying to work their way up to the NBA.

We are fortunate to have a Purple Ace in the league as well.


http://gopurpleaces.com/news/2010/3/16/MBB_0316105816.aspx

Shy Ely was the runner-up in voting for Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year in 2009, and the University of Evansville's first NABC All-District selection since Andy Elkins in 1995. His outstanding senior year (18.9 ppg, 5.8 rpg) caught the attention of pro scouts, landed him a try-out with the Chicago Bulls, and eventually earned him a earn a place in the NBA Development League.

Not only does the NBDL have former UE standout Shy Ely to bring fans out to NBDL games, but the NBDL also has several players from schools around Evansville that I believe would bring fans into town for a game.

The following are players that I believe will draw fans from around the region...

http://www.nba.com/dleague/players/school.html

Ball State - Kent, Anthony
Evansville - Ely, Shy
Indiana - Smith, Jamar
Indiana - Wilmont, Roderick
Kentucky - Patterson, Patrick
Kentucky - Stevenson, Perry
Louisville - Gaines, Reece
Louisville - Smith, Jerry
Notre Dame - Zeller, Luke
Purdue - Grant, Keaton
Purdue - Kramer, Chris

Unfortunately, the NBDL season overlaps with the Evansville Icemen's season so we will have to be creative with scheduling. This conflict has caused a few city officials to tell me that there aren't enough open dates for the NBDL. I disagree with this notion because if you look at the NBDL schedule ( http://www.nba.com/dleague/gameline/20101119/ ) you will notice that most teams only play 3 to 6 home games a month. In fact, if you look at most of the arenas in the NBDL you will see that most of them have both a NBDL team and a hockey team ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:NBA_Development_League_arenas ).

Although I am thrilled to death to have the Evansville Icemen and minor league hockey here, Evansville is a natural fit for basketball and must have the NBDL here as well. We are in the perfect market for the NBDL being that we are in the middle of Louisville, Indiana, and Kentucky which are basketball crazed areas.

There are three business models in the NBDL for us to choose from. A. A local investor would own the team B. A lot of NBA teams are starting to buy their NBDL teams or C. NBA team runs a few teams jointly with a local owner.

We are lucky that the NBDL already has Fort Wayne, Indiana which would create a great rivalry. Also, the Fort Wayne Mad Ants are affiliated with the Bulls, Pistons, and Pacers so the NBDL would be able to take one of those affiliates and give it to us. Obviously, I think we would be a natural fit with the Indiana Pacers and I think it would be best that Fort Wayne sticks with the Pistons because before they were the Detroit Pistons they were the Fort Wayne Pistons.

As I said in my open invitation to city officials, I am willing to personally go with the mayor and/or any city official who wants to go to the NBA World Headquarters in Secaucus, NJ to let them know that Evansville is open for business for an expansion team.

We need to bring the NBDL to Evansville!

Red Rover Red Rover Please Send The EPA On Over

Since I have yet to hear anything from David Dunn since starting this site, I began surfing the internet to see if he has ever considered Kleymeyer Park in the 6 years he has been working on this project. Surprisingly, he was approached about the location at the Parks Dept Board meeting ( the one that went from 6 pm to 12:30 am). When he was asked by Mrs. Martha Crosley about Kleymeyer Park, his answer was rather interesting.

http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:VsmpT-WsbZYJ:www.evansvillegov.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx%3Fdocumentid%3D8275+KleyMeyer+Park+Dump&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESigokCOXOpRgIpRcgeYQjVHyV0fSn_o_ckk5aSxAWN2GiETQsf5oOzxAlfQjYzzjyJAkmY0crzAbHhnZVxM-bI1MRWauHgWuPpP0hjyyddyaBu533joy3QKIm3L-ApuVKdo7wW6&sig=AHIEtbT1LHlso0gotDj9Bbo-2dCnTkRq-w
This is from pages 12 and 13...

Ms. Crosley asked if being by the Goebel Complex would mean that they could coordinate with Goebel for parking and concessions and that type of thing.

Mr. (Dunn) stated he assmned that would be possible. In their design, the concessions were m the center of each of the pods. The guests at their complex would have to walkover to the Goebel complex.

She asked if the design could be applied to other areas.

Dunn stated they looked at eight different areas around the community and the design worked anywhere that had roughly 60 — 75 acres.She asked if they had looked at Kleymeyer Park. Dunn explained briefly, but due to the conditions there, they didn’t study that park verylong.

Ms. Crosley asked what conditions.

Dunn responded the current conditions fi'om the old dump site.

Crosley stated there was a ball field there now and it was working fine. She suggested they could bridge the Greenway and Pigeon Creek and connect that to Garvin Park to allow some amenities that were already there to be utilized.

Dunn stated he would defer the question of whether it was working fine and whether it was a quality facility to Chris Rehn, who handled the City leagues.

Kleymeyer Park is brought back up by David Nicholson, former President of the Evansville Soccer Club on page 18...

One comment in regards to Kleymeyer Park. It was a dump and with all respect, it is a dump. The City Council looked at Kleymeyer Park for the soccer complex to be built and in the process,the Parks Department was installing a new scoreboard at Kleymeyer Park and the welder was welding it and it started on fire and bumed to the ground because of the methane gas.

Is this the reason why Dunn has refused to listen to me on Kleymeyer Park?

First of all, for those who don't know, Kleymeyer Park use to be an old landfill back when it was the First Ave Brick and Tile Co. Although I have no idea when the landfill was closed, I know it's been many years ago. Today, there is no signs whatsoever of the landfill. Currently on the land is a Pop Warner football field, 3 baseball fields, Bob Walter's Golf-N-Fun, and Bob Walter's driving range. There are no visible signs of garbage and there is no smell of garbage. In my opinion, the land has recovered quite nicely.

While I have never heard of the story about the welder burning the scoreboard down to the ground, I'm not sold on the methane gas (which is produced from decomposing landfill) being the reason for that. Aside from being non toxic, it would take a lot of methane gas to ignite like that. Furthermore, welding itself causes many more fires than methane gas.

It is nothing new for a baseball complex to be located on an old landfill. They have been sprouting up all over the country for many years now. Here is just one example...

http://www.newsobserver.com/2010/07/11/575185/you-can-have-fun-with-a-landfill.html

Now, in case you're thinking, " Well I like the fields at Kleymeyer Park but I just think all that methane gas is going to be a burden," I would like for you to know that not only is the methane gas there an asset instead of a liability, but this project can also be an environmentally friendly green project as well.



Since methane gas from landfills emit an enormous amount of polluting greenhouse gases into the air each year, the EPA has decided to focus on reducing these gases by converting them into energy.

This link from the EPA will tell you EVERYTHING you need to know about landfill gases and the benefits of this project.

http://www.epa.gov/lmop/basic-info/index.html#a02

Note: LFG= LandFill Gas

The U.S. EPA's Landfill Methane Outreach Program (LMOP) is a voluntary assistance program that helps to reduce methane emissions from landfills by encouraging the recovery and use of landfill gas (LFG) as an energy resource. LMOP forms partnerships with communities, landfill owners, utilities, power marketers, states, project developers, tribes, and nonprofit organizations to overcome barriers to project development by helping them assess project feasibility, find financing, and market the benefits of project development to the community. EPA launched LMOP to encourage productive use of this resource as part of the United States' commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills are the second-largest source of human-related methane emissions in the United States, accounting for approximately 22 percent of these emissions in 2008. At the same time, methane emissions from landfills represent a lost opportunity to capture and use a significant energy resource. LFG is created as solid waste decomposes in a landfill. This gas consists of about 50 percent methane (the primary component of natural gas), about 50 percent carbon dioxide (CO2), and a small amount of non–methane organic compounds.

Instead of escaping into the air, LFG can be captured, converted, and used as an energy source. Using LFG helps to reduce odors and other hazards associated with LFG emissions, and it helps prevent methane from migrating into the atmosphere and contributing to local smog and global climate change.

LFG is extracted from landfills using a series of wells and a blower/flare (or vacuum) system. This system directs the collected gas to a central point where it can be processed and treated depending upon the ultimate use for the gas. From this point, the gas can be flared, used to generate electricity, replace fossil fuels in industrial and manufacturing operations, or upgraded to pipeline–quality gas where the gas may be used directly or processed into an alternative vehicle fuel.

EPA is interested in developing LFG energy for many reasons:

•Projects help destroy methane, a potent heat-trapping gas.
•Projects generate renewable energy and offset the use of non-renewable resources such as coal, natural gas, and oil.
•There are many cost–effective options for reducing methane emissions while generating energy.
•Projects help reduce local air pollution.
•Projects create jobs, revenues, and cost savings

By linking communities with innovative ways to deal with their LFG, LMOP helps communities enjoy increased environmental protection, better waste management, and responsible community planning. For example, the Ecology Club at Pattonville High School in Maryland Heights, Missouri, came up with the idea to use gas from the nearby landfill to heat their school. The school paid $175,000 to run a 3,600–foot pipeline between the landfill and the school's two basement boilers. In turn, the landfill owner donated the methane to the school as a way of “giving back to the community.” The school anticipates that it will save $40,000 a year and recapture its investment within five years.

Clearly, the methane gas on the land is an ASSET NOT A LIABILITY. We have the opportunity to build a green project where we cut down on gases and find a source of electricity for our project. While we would have to invest some up front costs on the underground pipes and system (this won't disturb the ballfields) we should be able to recoup this invest within 5-10 years. Then, we would be making money, not losing money on this project!

Lastly, it has been mentioned that the hotel/motel tax should be spread around to all the parks such as Burdette and the 4-H Center. While this sounds good on paper, it is a completely bad idea. Why?

Because Kleymeyer Park hasn't been receiving its fair share of funds and neither has Pigeon Creek itself. As a result of years of neglect, Pigeon Creek itself needs to be cleaned up from toxins. Take a look at the different contaminents found in Pigeon Creek by the Indiana Dept of Health...

http://welbornfdn.org/2006%20Community%20Indicators%20Report%20-%20Natural%20Environment.pdf ( It's in a better graph form on their website than on my blog)

Selected Contaminants Found in Southwest Indiana
Waterways
Water Body-County-Potential Causes of Impairment

Hovey Lake Posey PCB’s

Ohio River Perry, Warrick, Vanderburgh, Posey PCB’s, dioxins, metals, mercury, bacteria
Patoka
Reservoir
Dubois Metals, mercury
Patoka River Dubois PCB’s, metals, mercury, lead,
bacteria
Patoka River Pike PCB’s, metals, mercury, sulfates
Patoka River Gibson PCB’s, metals, mercury, sulfates,
salts/TDS/chlorides
Pigeon Creek Vanderburgh PCB’s, metals, mercury,
pesticides, priority organics
Pigeon Creek-
Harper Ditch
Vanderburgh PCB’s, metals, mercury,
pesticides, priority organics,
salinity/TDS/chlorides
Pigeon Creek-
Kleymeyer Park
Vanderburgh PCB’s, metals, mercury,
pesticides, priority organics,
sulfates, salinity/TDS/chlorides,
bacteria
Wabash River Posey PCB’s, metals, mercury
Wabash River Gibson PCB’s, metals, mercury
White River, East Fork Dubois PCB’s, metals, lead

Indiana State Department of
Health. 2005 Fish Consumption Advisory.

Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation
Commission (ORSANCO).

Vanderburgh County Health

The amount of contaminents found in Pigeon Creek next to Kleymeyer Park by the Indiana Dept of Health is very disturbing to me, especially given the fact that I canoe through there all the time.

Before we worry about Burdette Park and the 4-H Center, we need to clean up Pigeon Creek first. And since we will already be working with the EPA on the landfill gas why don't we work with them on cleaning up Pigeon Creek? Kill two birds with one stone.

If we don't clean up this area now, it will only get worse and I believe it will get to the point where the EPA forces us to clean it up like they are with the sewers. We have the opportunity to avoid this by turning the ballfields project into a green project that will clean up the area, reduce gas emissions, and find another source of future revenue for the ballfields.

All we have to do is take a few lemons and make lemonade!

A Vision From A Save Roberts Stadium Fan

From time to time, I would like to publish ideas from you the viewer of this blog. Since starting my two blogs, I have gotten a bunch of ideas for the city that has made me say " Why didn't I think of that?" I believe that these emails just goes to show you, that if the city were to host a brainstorming session where residents could come up with ideas for Roberts Stadium and the ballfields at Kleymeyer Park, there is no telling what kind of great ideas we would find.

For this reason, I will now show you an email I received from a fan of this blog. It has a lot of great things in it!...

"I agree with the Recovery Bonds for Garvin Park area. Why not put 4 ball fields in that location and a walking bridge to Kleymeyer Park where 4 ball fields could be located (3 are already there but would need upgraded). I think there already is a dog park there too. This might be a win-win for the Vanderburgh Humane Society located near this area by walking to the park instead of driving (people and pet exercise). Why not develop along that stretch of Pigeon Creek into a Whitewater area with recycling pumps with kayak put-ins located in Garvin Park (this would be costly, but not found in to many cities. I would prefer an entire Whitewater Park in Vanderburgh or Warrick County). We already have the Greenway. Promote a Bike rental area along with the ballfields for parents to rent or bring their own while their kids, husband, wives, or friends play ball. Work with Vertical Escape to design and build climbing walls/boulders along the Greenway Paths for more physical exercise. Include a rope course for even more physical activity avenues. Create the Garvin-Kleymeyer park area into The Place to go to spend the day outdoors! All Year Long! Develop wildlife information sites where visitors can learn about the Pigeon Creek and it's animal inhabitants. Maybe incorporate Solar power for the Park lighting. It would be costly, but with rebates and "green" thinking we might get a lot of funds.

I would like to see a more park like situation at the Stadium site to continue the Wesselman theme, but not as elitist. Plant native hardwood trees and floral trees, and plants. Add 4 pavilions for visitors or citizens to rent for family gatherings and receptions. Add geothermal heating and a/c (how eco~friendly is that! It would also be an income maker for Wesselman or the Parks! What a novel idea.

I know a local restaurateur who would jump at the chance to have an event facility there and also run a restaurant daily on site). Place simple playgrounds and splash areas for visitors. Include green areas for visitors to play games. Improve the Shelters in Wesselman. Connect park paths with the State Hospital grounds. Improve Hartke park with an olympic size lap pool.

I believe visitors will go to the mall no matter where the ball parks are located. If your a shopper, 15-20 minutes drives are nothing! Straight south on First Ave to East on the Expressway to Eastland Mall.

Just a thought: Could we convert Roberts stadium to a swim/aquatic center? remove the collapsable seats and that would be a huge pool! Maybe 2 pools or a Diving pool and 1 large lap pool. Not sure of olympic pool sizing as we may get 2 in there or even 2 pools and a diving well. Rent it to the EVSC for more physical education for students! During School hours it could be used for citizens daily as a lap pool. The parking lot would not need to be as large so we could add some trees or green areas. I would imagine the humidity of a pool would never work with the existing stadium. But what an idea! Check out this video for a similar site:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBXDQyYGmTE&feature=related

I would be willing to bet there are sites on the South Side or even near Downtown Evansville that would be ideal for the ball park plan.

The opportunities for park development is endless.

Features desired in a park:

1. Rope course
2. Wildlife information stops
3. Bike rental and paths
4. Modern Restrooms
5. Rentable buildings for events- Private and public with heat and A/C
6. Climbing walls
7. exercise stations
8. Green areas - place to play lawn games: corn hole, hillbilly golf, whiffle ball, Bocce, croquet, pitch and catch, frisbee, sack-races, misc fun.
9. Sand volleyball courts
10. Playgrounds - assorted small groupings close to each shelter so parents can watch their kids without leaving their family event.
11. Horseshoe pits (one per shelter)
12. Drinking fountains
13. Splash/water spot 12x12 is big enough for each shelter.
14. picnic tables
15. Charcoal grills and fire pits
16. Electricity access at open shelters.

More information and some videos and pictures of other ideas and examples:

2 olympic size pools, 1 diving pool, splash park area that would also be utilized year round, with retractible roofs for year round usage: ( http://www.libart.com/products/freestanding/ )

Outdoor workout area - (created in cooperation with the National Gaurd and Reserve Units)
http://www.outdoorfunstore.com/commercial-fitness-healthtrek.asp
http://www.davidwilliamsassociates.com/fitness/triactive
http://www.outdoor-fitness.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3FRUPFHClg&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEc1R1MFC6o&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68Yv2NPAJ_w&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQj_C7JS0_Q&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrxpH6_viMU&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGfRDeqLCu8&feature=related

Artificial kayak/rafting course running around the stadium property? It could run nearly year round if not year round (water flowing). (exercise, and not beer drinking exercise a~la softball)

The following is a link to the U.S. National Whitewater Center that seems like a great idea for this property:

http://usnwc.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=207&Itemid=524

Imagine Kayaking, zip-lining, a Mega Jump, rock climbing, rafting, adventure course, and biking (Ieisure biking would be nice with the number of bikers we have in this area(ever been to the Great Pumpkin Bike Race at the 4-H?)

Note the only noise I can foresee is laughter and an occasional blood curdling scream of joy, terror, and excitement!

There would still be lighting, but I must agree the Musco lighting is about the only way to illuminate a facility.

Do something for all of us, not a few of us. I know many softball players, and most are driving to a site and driving home to play in tournaments. Yeah, they spend some money, but most don't spend the night. Parents with kids who are in the events might. Most probably do not.

Enough about that. Below I have included some random thought on the Evansville Future.

I foresee a pattern of movement in the planning. The Jail has moved, the EVSC has moved from SE 9th, an aging Civic/Judicial facility. It won't be long until the Civic/Judicial building will need an update. The battle will be to update or build new. We will build new after much debate. Main Street will open up with a direct line to North Main Street. That could very well be the next boom of new businesses and housing upgrades. With wider sidewalks, upgraded storefronts this could really blossom into something nice. A real tourist area along with downtown. This would tie Bosse Field with the downtown area and create another quick entrance and exit for the new arena. (yes, I am for it, just would rather had it ran better, seems a waste of money with the Executive debacle, Every citizen saw that coming ten miles away).

I would also like to see the dam by the river downtown widened on top from the 4 Freedom's monument to Waterworks Road so it would be more conducive to events that would not require a closing of Riverside. Wide enough for vendors and tents to sit on top with people traffic. Check out Owensboro's plan, They got it right by creating an event plaza without stopping traffic flow during the work day.


Put that Softball/ Baseball park in the downtown area, the city probably owns enough lots to create a new park for such a facility. Why put just a whiffle ball field in Tepee Park? Imagine what parents could do with their children if they had access to "the park" if it was in the downtown area? You might see more people playing baseball/softball. I can almost smell a cook off contest already nearby! Take two blocks and create a softball/baseball park with surrounding businesses that support the health of individuals. Picture these facilities with grant driven funding on each adjoining side:

Spinning classes
Weight room
Dance - Gymnastics
Art exploring room ~ paint, draw, carving, crafting
Martial arts
Book-exchange room
Treadmill area
along with small businesses that would encourage health and well being.

We cannot build a nicer Aquarium or Anything like an Indianapolis, St. Louis, Louisville, or Cincinnati. We don't have the population or money. Be unique! Think Big, Think Outside The Box! Don't be like every other town and city, If you try and plan you can succeed with the people's approval."

Roberts Stadium Proposal #9: Keep It Simple, Make It A Pool

This link was sent to me from a fan of Save Roberts Stadium. In this video, you will see in a quick 2 minutes and 56 seconds just how simple it is to convert an arena into a basic swimming center with qualifying lanes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBXDQyYGmTE&feature=related

As you can see, we don't have to reinvent the wheel to place a swimming pool inside of Roberts Stadium. City Councilman Dr. Dan Adams has said numerous times that Evansville desperately needs a good quality indoor swimming center. Why not Roberts Stadium?

Lloyd Pool is getting worse and worse each year. It's condition has become so bad that many residents avoid it. With a new swimming center at Roberts Stadium, we would keep the area as a recreational center for Evansville while retaining the indoor swimming market. Futhermore, it would compliment its surroundings quite nicely.

Sometime in the very near future, Hartke Pool will need to be renovated or demolished. While I personally believe that we already have plenty of outdoor pools and should convert it to an indoor waterpark resort if one's not built inside Roberts, they may want to keep one outside. At that point, many swimmers will be displaced while construction is ongoing. With a new indoor pool inside Roberts Stadium, they would have a place to go not only during construction but also year round.

Not only would converting Roberts Stadium into a basic swimming pool be affordable, but it would also save the $1.5 million budgeted for its demolition. Most importantly, 54 years of history would stay intact!

Not Again!

Usually I don't pass around news tips until they have become official because I don't like to speculate or spread false rumors. However, I have a strong, strong source with multiple sources that can confirm this next story is going on behind closed doors.

http://city-countyobserver.com/2010/11/17/is-it-true-november-17-2010/

IS IT TRUE that Vanderburgh County Councilman Tom Shetler Jr. has requested that the proposed Robert’s Stadium little league baseball/softball field project be added to the November 24th Agenda for the Vanderburgh County Council?…that Councilman Shetler’s request will have to be deferred until December 1st because this proposal entails a bond issue and has to be advertised as a public meeting?….that Mole #3 says that if the vote was taken today that the vote would look something like the following: Nay, Russ Lloyd Jr., Stephanie Terry, and Ed Bassemeir, Yea;Tom Shetler Jr., Joe Kiefer, and Mike Goebel?….that only Jim Raben has not yet let his intentions be known to any CCO Mole?…that our money grows on other peoples trees Mayor Weinzapfel is quietly committing the money to demolish Robert’s Stadium if the County Council approves this previously proposed $18M ball fields project?….that the costs are being spread around to reduce the amount of the bond issue that the CVB would need to do?….that some City of Evansville department head may see his or her budget shrink by $1.5M to pay for this demolition?….that the City County Observer thought that this cat only had nine lives?….that only Gregory Rasputin had more lives than a cat?….that if built these ball fields should be named Rasputin Park to commemorate the number of presentations it took to get built?….that the CCO is greatly disappointed in County Councilman Tom Shetler Jr. for not manning up and bringing this to a vote before the 2010 general election?…..that the City County Observer is shocked and amazed that any of the innkeepers tax would even be considered as on the table for ball fields when a binding contract is not in place for a Downtown Convention Hotel to complement the County owned Centre?

If true, I cannot express just how truly I am disappointed in Evansville's city leaders. I have spoken to the Mayor, I have spoken in front of the county council, and I have spoken to a commissioner. They are all aware of the fact that we CAN and SHOULD save Roberts Stadium. They are aware that I have a group willing to study Roberts Stadium for around $32,500. They are aware that Evansville has great potential for both a botanical garden and an indoor waterpark. Both of these concepts would fit inside Roberts Stadium.

They have chosen to ignore these pieces of information. They have chosen to do all they can to throw Roberts Stadium and its rich 54 years worth of history under the bus. Lastly, they have clearly demonstrated that they have NO IDEA OF HOW TO HANDLE THIS SITUATION.

I know this is beating a dead horse, but once again, I'm calling on you the viewer of this blog to become vocal once more in your support for Roberts Stadium. The emails for both the county council and the mayor are on the right hand side of this blog. You were the reason for the ballfields failing for the first time, you were the reason for them failing for the second time, and now I want you to be the reason for them to fail for the third time at Wesselman Park.



I WANT YOU!... to tell the Mayor and the county council to...

Keep Roberts Stadium SAFE!


And tell David Dunn and the Wesselman Park ballfield project STRIKE 3 YOU'RE OUT OF HERE!

Rumors of Roberts Stadium's Demise Have Been Greatly Exaggerated

In the world of politics, there is something known as "half truths." Half Truths are when a politician will tell you something that is true but has been taken way out of context or omitted important facts to make you believe it stands for something else. The intent is to give you a false impression of something while avoiding slander and libel charges at the same time.

For example, Politician A will run an ad saying, "You can't vote for my opponent because he wants to enact a 7% sales tax. Clearly he wants to raise taxes." What the politician didn't tell you is that Politician B voted for the sales tax to be raised in exchange for all other taxes to be abolished, thus lowering the overall taxes you would pay. If you didn't know the additional information, you would believe Politician B just wants to raise taxes on everyone.

Unfortunately, Roberts Stadium has fallen victim to some Half Truths, mainly by those who wish to get it in the ground as soon as possible. They know what they're doing but they rely on you not knowing the whole situation about Roberts Stadium and unfortunately many local residents have taken the bait.

One of the biggest Half Truths going around right now is the belief that " It will take $36 million to $90 million to renovate Roberts Stadium. Unless we find that amount of money we will have to demolish Roberts Stadium."

This has been echoed by...

Steve Bohleber, President of the Parks Board: http://m.courierpress.com/news/2010/oct/12/parks-board-approves-wesselman-proposal/

" Bohleber said the visitors bureau's plan gets rid of Roberts Stadium, which he deemed an obsolete building. A consultant hired by the city said making renovations to Roberts would cost between $39 million and $90 million."

The ECVB: http://www.theparkevansville.com/review-frequently-asked-questions/index.php

"Roberts Stadium has been a wonderful attribute to the community for over 50 years. Why would we want to tear it down?

Roberts Stadium has been a wonderful attribute to the community. But studies have shown that it has outlived its useful purpose. The new Downtown Arena will replace Roberts Stadium as the key venue for concerts, sporting events and other key events. The new state of the art facility that will provide far more attributes than that of Roberts Stadium.

Additionally, in studies conducted on future uses for Roberts Stadium and the costs related to a possible re-development of the Roberts facility, it has found to be financially infeasible to renovate the current structure into a useful structure. Studies for various options of reuse put an estimated cost in the range of 25 to 40 million dollars to renovate the Roberts Stadium facility. Even after this expenditure, the community would still have a 54-year-old facility."

The Mayor: http://www.courierpress.com/news/2010/apr/09/evansville-mayor-likes-roberts-stadium-proposal/

" One alternative bandied about called for building a water park inside the stadium. But no one has come forward with a way to pay for that project, Weinzapfel said.

He speculated that private developers may be shying away from Roberts Stadium for the same reason city officials decided against trying to renovate it. A consulting firm hired to study the 54-year-old venue concluded it would cost as much as $91.9 million to make improvements meant to curtail the threat of flooding there and strengthen the roof so it could support more weight."

So with all these city officials/leaders coming out with these huge figures, it must be true that Roberts Stadium is beyond repair, correct? Well, lets take a look at the study.

http://www.evansvillearenaproject.com/downloads/consultant_report.pdf

This is taken directly from pages 40 & 41...

The items considered as necessary just to
maintain the status quo are listed in the following table:

1. Central Plant (heating, cooling, hot water). . .$3-4 million
2. Arena bowl infrastructure upgrades
(energy efficiency, constant speed fans, etc.). . .$2 million
3. Locker room air handling. $500,000
4. Drainage system. ..$300,000
5. Electrical distribution system. ..$400,000
6. Telephone equipment. ..$100,000
7. Catwalk system for arena bowl
(lighting and maintenance improvements). ..$1.4 million
8. Sound system upgrade .$3-5 million
9. Scoreboard replacement ..$1.5-3 million
10. Additional power boxes on event floor ...$100-100,000
11. Loading dock expansion to include additional
lighting and storage .$100,000
12. Concourse lighting ..$250,000
13. Upgrading power capabilities in concourse $100,000
14. Upgrading power in the ticket office ..$50,000
15. Providing additional power to the green rooms, etc ...$50,000

Total $12.8-17.3 million

It should be noted however that this assessment does not assist Roberts in capturing
revenue which should come to this facility. Based upon our review the building is
currently missing opportunities to raise significant revenues. Our judgment of the
revenue loss on the existing facility is set forth in the following table.

1. Suite revenue .. .$150,000
2. Advertising revenue .$600,000-800,000
3. Premium seating such as club seats or loges ...$50,000
4. Party suites and other group sales and
promotional opportunities ...$400,000
5. Concession and merchandising sales ..$200,000-350,000

Total $1.4 million -1,750,000

In addition to these specific revenue losses the size of the building as it exists today dampens the demand for basketball tickets for the University of Evansville. That is, because the building is substantially larger than the average turn out for a U of E basketball game there is no incentive to purchase tickets early or to purchase season tickets. A smaller venue would be advantageous to the University s effort to fill the house. Also, it is increasingly the case that older venues are trying to sell naming rights to generate additional funds. We believe that it is very doubtful that Roberts Stadium could be renamed and if it is, the revenue generated from the sale of the naming rightswould be very modest.

The second assessment or Assessment Related To Improvement focused on the
structural changes necessary in order to bring the building to a first class state of the art status. The table below identifies the major areas which would have to be changed in order to accomplish this result.

1. Increase Size of Event Floor $40-50 million
2. Ad permanent ice .$1.4 million
3. Increase concourse size $3 million
4. Improve rigging capacity .$9-9.2 million
5. Supplement and change truck docks $1-2 million
6. New seating $400-500,000
7. New scoreboard system .$1.5-3 million
8. ADA compliance ...$3-5 million
9. Advertising facilities .$1.1-1.4 million
10. New concession equipment . ..$1.5 million

Total ..$61,900,000 75,000,000

In addition to these major structural changes many of the items included in the status quo analysis would also have to be done should renovation be considered the prime option. A number of items included in the status quo scenario would also have to be accomplished during the course of the major renovation. This would increase the bottomline cost of renovation to bring the facility up to modern standards to approximately $89.9 million. In our judgment, it does not make any sense just to proceed with the status quo improvements. If renovation were to take place at least a significant number of the structural elements should be accomplished. Thus, our assessment is that the expenditure range for doing renovation would run from a low of $38.2 million to a high of $89.9 million. We do not think that such an expenditure can be justified for a building which is already 52 years old.

As you can see, indeed it would cost close to $90 million to renovate Roberts Stadium..... AS AN ARENA! The problem is, we're not talking about renovating Roberts Stadium as an arena. That idea went out the door when the new downtown arena broke ground ( which I support).

What I am proposing is placing a botanical garden, an indoor waterpark, an indoor recreational center, etc, etc inside Roberts Stadium, not an arena. If you look at my 8 ideas, none of them will need a wider loading dock, a stronger roof, more restrooms to become ADA compliant, or a new scoreboard. Thus, this study DOES NOT prove that there are no viable alternatives for Roberts Stadium. As I noted in a previous post, I have a well known group who is willing to study ideas like the 8 I have given for Roberts Stadium.

I'm not saying converting Roberts Stadium into whatever we want it to be will be free. It will cost money no matter which idea we go with. However, the money it will cost to install a botanical garden, an indoor waterpark, or a recreational center will mostly come from the materials needed to construct that specific project which would be needed if it were being built somewhere else. I also believe we can get the private sector involved if we convert it to something like an indoor waterpark.

When you hear Half Truths such as " It's either Roberts Stadium or the new arena," " It will cost close to $90 million to renovate Roberts Stadium," or " We don't know of anyone willing to renovate Roberts Stadium," just remember that these statements are nothing more than smoke and mirrors.

The sky is NOT falling in on Roberts Stadium!

VICTORY #1! But a Long Way to go!

Today, the EVCB withdrew their request for the Vanderburgh County Council to approve funding and financing for demolishing Roberts Stadium and building the 8 fields on the site. This is a huge victory for saving Roberts Stadium, but we certainly have a long road ahead of us. For this reason, I reinterate my plea...

Mr. Dunn, please consider working with me to build 8 vintage baseball fields at Kleymeyer Park. I believe Kleymeyer Park is the best site period. I also believe we can and will build the best sports field complex in the entire U.S. We will get it done!

To City Officials,

I urge you now more than ever to spend the $32,500 on the Roberts Stadium study. I also urge you to work with me on finding possible tenants for a botanical garden, an indoor recreational center, or an indoor waterpark. We have the resources, the demand, and the willingness to get any of these ideas done. Now is the time to SAVE ROBERTS STADIUM.

I also want you the viewer of this blog to remain active. Certainly, without your support we would not be in this position. I now ask that you keep the letters coming to the county council in favor of saving Roberts Stadium and building the ball fields at Kleymeyer Park.

While this victory is great, we still have a long way to go and I believe we will get there!

Saving History By Bringing Back History

As most people around here are familiar with, Bosse Field was the site of the movie " A League of Their Own." The movie starred Geena Davis, Tom Hanks, Madonna and Rosie O'Donnell. Bosse Field served as the home field for the Racine Belles of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.

A little more about the AAGPBL:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All-American_Girls_Professional_Baseball_League

http://www.aagpbl.org/index.cfm

Although it would be nice for the league to return and Evansville have a team someday, currently no women's baseball league or museum exists. There is a huge open hole for Evansville to fill with these proposed ballfields.

One of the proposed leagues and tournaments that will play at these fields is a girls and women's softball league and tournament. If you were a director for a women's softball league, where would you want to play? At 8 regularly designed baseball fields at Wesselman Park or at 8 vintage MLB Parks where the last two teams square off at historic Bosse Field, where the sign " Home of the Racine Belles" still stands?



If seems pretty obvious to me that if we market 8 MLB fields at Kleymeyer with the last two teams playing at Bosse Field, we are going to attract every single softball tournament that is possible. Yes, we would have to work around the Otters schedule, but there are plenty of dates to go around, especially in the spring time.

To further attract more leagues and tourists, Bosse Field must set up a women's baseball museum that commemorates the AAGPBL. There is plenty of demand from tourists to want to see old Rockford Peaches and Racine Belles uniforms, pictures, and history. The museum would also promote Bosse Field as a great and historic place for girls and women to play baseball/softball.

With this ballfield project, we have the opportunity to save both Roberts Stadium and Bosse Field. You see, someday, some year the city will inevitable explore building a new downtown ballfield again due to Bosse Field being unable to be renovated. We will then be in the same situation we are in now with a new sports venue being built and city officials wanting to tear the old one down.

If we act now, we can find a useful purpose for Bosse Field both with the Otters and with softball and baseball championships so that when the new field is built we can play our new A baseball team on the same day the softball/baseball championships are going on, and then play the Otters on the other days.

We have the opportunity to save history by bringing back history.

David Dunn I Would Like to Work With You

Mr. Dunn,

Over these past few weeks, you've taken quite a bit of grief for your project. I am here to let you know that if you are willing to move this ballfield project away from historic Roberts Stadium and over to Kleymeyer Park where it belongs I am more than willing to work with you to make these ballfields the best damn ballfields not just locally but in the entire country.

I firmly believe that we can build replica ballfields ( http://www.bigleaguedreams.com/replica-fields ) and even if the local governments aren't interested we can even find private financing for it ( http://www.bigleaguedreams.com/corporate/park-development ). Baseball fans will come from all over the country to see these fields Mr. Dunn. We can take great pride in watching Don Mattingly take the first pitch at the Yankee Stadium replica field as the old time baseball organ plays "Take Me Out To The Ball Game." Garvin Park will once again come back to life as the winners of the tournaments face off at historic Bosse Field. North Main Street will be taken back to 1915 when it all began.

For a small amount of $32,500 we can find out for sure what to do with Roberts Stadium. I believe that study will find us several great options for Roberts Stadium that include an indoor waterpark, an indoor recreational center, or a botanical garden. Roberts Stadium has 54 great years of history inside her. She means too much to this community to demolish her. Roberts Stadium was there for us in that terrible year of 1977 when our community lost 29 great UE men. Now it's our time to be there for her.

Mr. Dunn, I want you to know that I appreciate you beginning this project. It took a lot of guts to get this going. Now I'm asking for you to make the wise decision to move the fields and save Roberts Stadium! I truly believe that if we save Roberts Stadium and build at Kleymeyer Park we will have a project that generations and generations of future Evansvillians will cherish and enjoy. If we build these fields they will come, and if we save Roberts Stadium more people will come.

I've talked to the neighbors on Boeke, they will support us. I talked to Marsha Abell, she will support us. I've gotten email after email from Evansville residents, they will support us. I've gotten email after email from fellow Roberts Stadium supporters, they will support us. Evansville needs and wants Roberts Stadium and Kleymeyer Park ballfields to be a success.

Feel free to email me anytime (JordanBaer1@gmail.com). Let's do this project right and let's get it across the finish line! Whataya say?

Sincerely,

Jordan Baer

There is a Group Willing to Study Roberts Stadium

Although I have provided 8 proposals for what to do with Roberts Stadium to keep it intact, I believe that a formal study needs to be conducted for the simple fact that they have the resources I do not have to put together a plan that will convince everyone just how profitable saving Roberts Stadium can be.

I've been sending out emails this week to gauge the interest in doing a study for Roberts Stadium and I was pleasantly surprised to hear back from a group.

In my opinion, it will not be too costly to figure out if we can save Roberts Stadium. Around $32,000 is the estimate which will not break the budget of this project, especially given the fact that the estimated costs to demolish Roberts Stadium have gone from $1.25 million to $1.5 million in the last presentation we have heard from David Dunn ( http://media.courierpress.com/media/static/The_Park_Construction_Budget-1029.pdf ).

If you were opening up a business and you were considering financing a project where the cost had risen from $1.25 million to $1.5 million don't you think you would spend $32,000 on a study to make sure you weren't throwing a million and a half dollars down the drain?

I firmly believe this study will provide several options for the city to undertake in order to save Roberts Stadium and increase tourism, but even if the study said nothing can be done for Roberts Stadium the city would still have the $1.5 million to demolish it. Roberts Stadium is going to be open for about a year from today so there is plenty of time for the city to perform this study.

Lastly, after I spoke at the county council meeting last weekend about this ballfield project, the Evansville Convention & Visitor's Bureau ( the group who is undertaking this project) went back up infront of the council to request $10,000 more dollars from the council. Why? Because their Executive Director position, which has been vacated by Marilee Fowler, isn't attracting anyone they want to take the position for $88,000.

I found this VERY INTERESTING given the fact that I myself have applied for this position. For the record, I have a degree in marketing and management and I even provided them with my blog which has almost 50 ideas for getting Evansvile moving forward (EvansvilleMovingForward.blogspot.com). However, I was never interviewed and the EVCB said their recruiting team interviewed feverishly here locally and found no one they wanted to take the position, thus they now need to bump the salary up to $98,000 and add relocation expenses if the candidate is out of the area. This is almost 1/12th the budget of the EVCB for one person.

As a recent graduate, I'm willing to accept this position for $60,000 so that the remaining $28,000 can be saved for this study to save Roberts Stadium, as well as saving the council the additional $10,000. If after the end of the year the EVCB and the city aren't satisfied, they can simple let me go and start back to where they are today. It's a win-win solution that will help save Roberts Stadium. As the email said, now is the time to find a solution for Roberts Stadium!

Introducing Big League Dreams Sports Parks

As a part of my efforts to build vintage replica fields of MLB ballparks, I began searching late last night to see if there were any more organizations that did this same activity. What I found at approximately 2:38 am today is a gold mine.




http://www.bigleaguedreams.com/



As you can see from their replica ballpark designs ( http://www.bigleaguedreams.com/replica-fields ) they have already built EVERY SINGLE ballfield that I have proposed ( Yankee Stadium, Wrigley Field, Fenway Park, Polo Grounds, Ebbets Field, Crosley Field, Sportsman's Park, & Tiger Stadium).



But it gets even better. They do it at NO taxpayer expense: http://www.bigleaguedreams.com/corporate/park-development

From their website...

BIG LEAGUE DREAMS NEW PARK DEVELOPMENT BENEFITS

•Brings additional recreational sports facilities to your community
•Local youth and adults served first
•No city maintenance or operations costs
•No taxpayer expense
•Revenue generated for the city
•Positive local economic impact
•Large market visibility


While I can not gaurantee you that they will come here, one would have to believe that if the city was willing to give Kleymeyer Park, or at least sign a lease, to Big League Dreams and tell them that they will put in the proper infrastructure all the way up to historic Bosse Field they would be take the deal in a heart beat. Furthermore, this would free up money to save Roberts Stadium and build around Kleymeyer Park.

Folks, this is a project we just can't turn our backs on!

Vintage Little League Fields Around the U.S & My 8 Proposed Fields

There is great precedent for building a baseball complex that replicates vintage major league baseball fields of the past. Not only is the U.S building these fields, but it is also doing it in simple and doable manners that won't stretch the budgets of local governments. In my opinion, the best organization that understands this concept is Ripken Design (http://www.ripkendesign.com/ ) Founded by MLB Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, Ripken Design has constructed several little league fields that replicate the big league fields.

Ripken Design manages and/or designs softball fields, minor league fields, and restoration of vintage fields. At Ripken Academy, a field that replicates Camden Yards draws fans from across the country http://www.ripkendesign.com/portfolio/youthsportscomplex/academy/ to Aberdeen, MD. Ripken Design also is building America's Pastime Park in North Little Rock, AR where one field pays tribute to Fenway Park's Green Monster http://www.ripkendesign.com/portfolio/youthsportscomplex/pastimepark/

Another project Ripken took on was building a youth field on the ground once occupied by Memorial Stadium the former home to the Baltimore Orioles.

Memorial Stadium

before:


after:



Other projects going on around the U.S besides Ripken's

Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium

before:


after:


This guy has built replica's of Fenway Park and Wrigley Field in his back yard.
http://www.insidesocal.com/tomhoffarth/archives/2010/08/more-on-where-w.html
http://littlefenway.com/fenway/home

Fenway


Wrigley


So with that being said, I now nominate 8 vintage baseball fields I would like to replicate at Kleymeyer Park

Wrigley Field- Chicago Cubs


Fenway Park- Boston Red Sox


Yankee Stadium- New York Yankees


Crosley Field- Cincinnati Reds


Sportsman's Park- St. Louis Cardinals


Tiger Stadium- Detroit Tigers


Polo Grounds- New York (now San Francisco) Giants


Ebbets Field- Brooklyn (now Los Angeles) Dodgers

Roberts Stadium Proposal #8: A Botanical Garden

A few months ago, I had the opportunity to go to the botanical gardens in Omaha, Nebraska ( http://www.omahabotanicalgardens.org/ ). If you've ever been to a botanical gardens you will notice that they are quite popular and they are always fun to tour.

Yes, we do already have somewhat of a botanical garden at the Mesker Park Zoo. However, this proposal would not compete with the zoo's. The Zoo is a specialty garden that specializes in tropical plants specifically and most people with Mesker Park Zoo have said that even that project is so popular that they probably built it way too small.

So what is a botanical garden specifically. Wikipedia gives the perfect definition. It says...

"Botanical gardens or botanic gardens are generally well-tended parks displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names. They may contain specialist plant collections such as cacti and succulent plants, herb gardens, plants from particular parts of the world, and so on; there may be greenhouses, again with special collections such as tropical plants, alpine plants or other exotic plants. Visitor services often include garden tours, educational displays, art exhibitions, book rooms, open-air theatrical and musical performances and other entertainment.

Botanical gardens are often run by universities or other scientific research organizations and often have associated herbaria and research programmes in plant taxonomy or some other aspect of botanical science. In principle their role is to maintain documented collections of living plants for the purposes of scientific research, conservation, display and education, although this will depend on the resources available and the special interests pursued at each particular garden."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Botanical_gardens

From the research that I have done, botanical gardens can be a few acres all the way up to several hundred acres. For this reason, we will need to design one that will fit into our budget. How can we do this.

1. Work with USI and/or UE to set up a research institution at Roberts Stadium which would be funded with grants and endowments. USI already does most of the projects at New Harmony and I believe this project would fit right into their university goals.

2. Work with private donors. At today's county council meeting, Martha Crosley said she had an organization from Bloomington, IN wanting to plant natural forest trees as well as exotic plants and trees. She said they would plan on funding this proposal by endowments and grants as well. I firmly believe that with historic Wesselman Woods we can find plenty of organizations willing to do research and humanity work on the site.

3. Recruit sponsors: Many botanical gardens have sponsors, members, and contributors. Ones in Atlanta, Omaha, New York, and elsewhere usually have over 100,000 members and supporters of their gardens. While I'm not sure we would draw 100,000 supporters early on, I'm confident we can draw a good chunk of people to support the project.

4. Charge admissions but keep it reasonable. Most botanical gardens have admission fares ranging from $5-$10. Not only are the gardens a good tourist draw, they also are affordable enough to attract a large number of customers. I also believe we can attract enough people to offset the costs of the gardens.

With that being said, what would I propose the Wesselman Wood's Roberts Stadium Botanical Garden look like? I believe it should look like this.

1. The back parking lot is removed and replanted with botanical garden trees.

2. The lower level of Roberts Stadium has exotic plants, trees, and species for viewers to see up close.

3. The main level has an indoor greenway so that bikers and walkers have a place to go when it rains. The level is also a main hub for the greenway where residents can take a stroll through Evansville history.

4. Inside Roberts Stadium is a visitors center, a cafe, a shop, a bookroom with books on historical and exotic plants and trees, art designs, as well as classrooms for educational events.

Although building a botanical garden takes much work and dedication, I believe that we have a headstart since we already have 1. a $20 million building 2. A historic nature preserve 3. A front parking lot for guests to park to come to the garden.

A botanical garden inside of Roberts Stadium is a win-win for everyone.

A Few Simple Changes Will Mean A World of Difference

Today, I spoke in front of the County Council in support of both moving the baseball field complex to Kleymeyer Park across from Garvin Park and for saving Roberts Stadium. I believe that my plan is simple and I want to outline it for you the viewer of my blog so that everyone will understand just how simple this plan is to make EVERYONE happy.


1. The County Council must make David Dunn & the EVCB commit to moving the ballfield complex to Kleymeyer Park. Why? For several reasons. 1. The ballfields will be able to draw from the nostalgic baseball history that nearby neighbor Bosse Field has created. Furthermore, it will act as a stimulus project for First Avenue, Diamond Ave, and Main St. It will also be just a little ways down Main Street from the new hotel that will be next to the new arena. Lastly, the current plan wants to take advantage of retail down the Lloyd Expressway from Wesselman Park. Well, this complex will just require going down Main St. or First Avenue and then down the same Lloyd Expressway. In fact, everything good about the current plan will still be there for my plan, including the greenway, nearby basketball and handball courts, as well as putt putt and arcade games. Kleymeyer Park must be the location for this project.

2. David Dunn and his architects MUST go back to the drawing board and design these parks to look like vintage baseball fields. Keep in mind, these are simple cosmetic architecture changes, nothing out of the budget and certainly nothing drastic... Here are some examples..

Mini Fenway & Wrigley.. http://www.insidesocal.com/tomhoffarth/archives/2010/08/more-on-where-w.html

Rosenblatt Stadium

before: http://steveadamsomaha.tripod.com/Jim_Burnett_Aphotos/RosenblattZoo2.jpg

after: http://www.momaha.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=OW&Date=20100610&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=100619989&Ref=AR&maxw=490&maxh=275

Memorial Stadium

before: http://imagecache5.art.com/LRG/6/672/4UWC000Z.jpg

after: http://ripkenfoundation.org.ismmedia.com/ISM3/thumbcache/c31e17d035ddf6bd80d0fbfe6b7b9109.300.jpg

As you can see, there's nothing overly expensive about these designs, yet their images will draw in many, many, many more visitors to Evansville!

3. Evansville MUST make a good faith effort to Save Roberts Stadium! On this blog I have mentioned 7 proposals and I will be adding my 8th one ( a botanical garden) today. I firmly believe that if we get a good faith effort we will find a proper and productive use for this historic venue and we can save the $1.5 million demolition funds at the same time.

Why will these 3 simple steps work...

1. It will draw more tourists to the field as well as retain those projected to come to the current proposal.
2. It will make Roberts Stadium supporters like me happy while bringing in even more revenue and tourists.
3. It will reduce the amount of people opposed to this project. In fact, Marsha Abell, who has expressed her opposition to this project, has said she likes my location.
4. Those who want something natural in that area could possible get their wish with something like a botanical garden.
5. Kleymeyer Park is closer to a Recovery Zone than Wesselman Woods. The area desperately needs something to come and revitalize it.
6. David Dunn still gets to be the leader of the ballfields project and most of his work will transfer from his location to my location.
7. First Ave, Diamond Ave, Main Street, and Garvin Park will be stimulated versus nothing around the Wesselman Park landlocked area.
8. It will bring more people into the new downtown hotel.
9. This project will qualify for the exact same funding as the current proposal.
10. This plan will be eligible to break ground as soon as funding is available while the current plan will have to wait for Roberts Stadium to close.
11. Kleymeyer Park is run by the Parks Department, the same group who is overseeing the current proposed location. With my plan, the existing maintenance costs of Kleymeyer Park would be combined into the maintenance costs of this proposal, thus keeping the Parks Department budget a little lower.
12. Funding for my plan would cut the $1.5 million demolition costs of Roberts Stadium as well as lower the funding needed to construct parking since there already is some next to Kleymeyer Park. Therefore I believe my plan would be cheaper than $17.5 million.

If the county council, David Dunn, Mayor Weinzapfel, and the County Commissioners are willing to take these 3 simple steps, I believe we will have a better plan that will make everyone happy! For this reason, I'm asking for your support of this project as well.