By Paul J. Condra
The new field would replace an older, larger field at Greis Park on Horton Avenue with a redesigned, upgraded Little League ball park that would not only be suitable for Lynbrook teams, but county and state tournaments as well.
We've just made the first proposal, said Nick Deninno, the president of the Lynbrook Little League. We are still waiting for word from the village.
The first proposal aims to start laying the sod for the new field in January. The design, by the Lynbrook firm Carman Dunne, calls for 60-foot baselines and an outfield fence at 210 feet. There will also be dugouts, metal bleachers and perhaps six pole lights. The cost of the new field is estimated around $200,000.
Deninno said if construction were started by the date in the proposed schedule, the field could be ready by spring of 2002.
One of the reasons we are looking to get this ball field is that Greis Park has been expanding over the years. It now has a picnic area, bocci courts, a volley ball park, a hockey rink and a pool, Deninno said.
Lynbrook never really had a good stadium like the other villages.
Deninno said the Lynbrook ball park would round out the village as it grows and the demand for a better ball park increases. He said the ball park could also be used for high school softball teams and regional Little League tournaments that would bring a lot of people into the village.
Currently, there are 40 teams in the Lynbrook Little League. Deninno said the field would be used primarily by the 9-12 year-old group, which consists of between eight and 16 teams.
The plan has not been met with any opposition, apart from how the village would supply funding. There was some concern over the refiguring of the soccer fields as the Little League outfield would extend slightly into where the fields are normally drawn. But a compromise was made that if the fields were shifted a little, the pole-lighting in the outfield of the baseball park could be used for soccer as well.
Of course, Deninno said the lights will come after the park is done, and won't be included on the 2002 development plan should it be approved.
Deninno said the park would be paid for by both the village and the Little League through donations and sponsorships. There is also talk of building a grand-stand with an announcer box and bathrooms in the future.
Environmentally, park planners said the new ball park poses little concern. There has always been a small area of the park that remains damp and unusable, said recreational director Dick Flynn. He said that situation would have to be resolved as the soccer fields will most likely need that space if the ball park is built.
I don't think it's going to be a problem, Flynn said. But he still has no indication which way the board will go.
