Jefferson Softball Park updates benefit Greene County softball team

By NICOLE HASEK nhasek@iowainformation.com

The Jefferson Softball Park, the field the Greene County softball team plays on, will be undergoing renovations in the spring.

The Greene County school district has a sharing agreement with the City of Jefferson, who owns the field. Superintendent Brett Abbotts said the school and the city have worked well together to get improvements started.

“There’s a lot [of needed updates], but we’re starting with what has more to do with the actual field itself, or the playing condition for our girls,” Abbotts said.

Abbotts said the irrigation line has been fixed for the outfield, and Raccoon Valley Lawn Care helped to make that happen. Bases will be realigned to make sure they are in the correct location and a new material will be added to the infield to help with drainage.

“There’s a lip that runs around the back of the infield that we’re going to take down, so balls being hit through the infield don’t skip up off that,” Abbotts said.

The city helped the school remove the batting cage that was on the north side of the field, and a new cage will be added to replace this.

“It’s going to be a complete steel enclosure with a mesh top roof so they can have ample room and space to do their pitching and hitting practices,” Abbotts said.

The cage would cost around $25,000 to $30,000. Abbotts said after talking with coaches, this was the most desired update.

“We’re trying to balance listening to [coaches], hearing some concerns that are coming from the public, and then also trying to work with the city,” Abbotts said. “It’s a delicate balance but I feel like we’re working through it very positively together. I know we’re moving in the right direction.”

A new scoreboard was recently added and basic turf improvements will be coming in the spring.

Abbotts said that looking into the future, they will have to partner with the city for new lights, bathrooms and concession stands. 

“We wanted to focus on the actual playing conditions of the field first, before we moved into anything else,” Abbotts said.

Once the work is started in the spring, Abbotts said it should not take too long to complete. Abbotts said it has been easy to work with City Administrator Scott Peterson and his team to start the discussions of this project.

“Whenever we’ve asked for something, they’ve been able to have the conversation with us and help us make a joint decision on how we’re going to move about this,” Abbotts said. “They’re taking our requests very seriously and being really supportive. That’s exactly what we would hope to have with a city and school district partnership.”

Abbotts is looking forward to creating a space the softball team is proud to play on and showing the school the community supports their athletics.