We’ve all laughed at the classic Abbott and Costello skit that plays with the names of a hypothetical baseball team…”Who’s on first?” and “What’s on second?” The humor comes from the fact that Abbott is well informed about the facts while Costello is hopelessly struggling to piece everything together on his own. That approach may work well in Vaudeville, but not when it comes to a real project.

To provide some answers concerning the minor league Lake County Fielders project we should start with the relocation. The City of Zion entered into a contract with the North Shore Sanitary District to develop Trumpet Park in 2003. As part of that agreement, the 18-acre site at 9th & Greenbay, known as Cell B East, was available at a pre-negotiated price when the stadium project advanced. The land was the city’s only commitment to the project and a stadium would be a competitive amenity within a corporate park, similar to other business parks in Lake and Kenosha counties. The site was never used as a landfill so the IEPA approved it for commercial use in mid-2009.

Planning the site and developing a team had taken over two years and in that time the economy has taken a very different turn. It became more financially responsible to consider leasing property over an outright purchase. However it was essential for any new site to already offer detention, utilities and access in place. The location at 173 and Greenbay had all this and more with higher visibility, lighted intersection, retail potential and the ability to influence other developments on adjacent corners. Also, while ‘going green’ is en vogue and the reuse of a landfill a responsible development choice, relocating the project to a more traditional placement will invite even more private investment to the project, allowing it to expand to include retail.

Much of the advanced design and engineering prepared for Cell B was adaptable to the new site at 173 & Greenbay, saving months of prep work. The site also had an open SMC permit, again saving time and while it was originally thought that hundreds of cubic yards of fill would be needed, it has since been revealed that the site will only require mass grading for the first season, again, saving weeks on the project. The field design and installation have been expedited, the permanent lighting ordered, season one stands and concessions navigated and ticket holders are being apprised of their options. Season ticket holders will be allowed to keep their seat locations for the 2011 season and attend all Northern League games in 2010 for free. Additional options for all ticket holders are available online at www.fieldersbaseball.com

The team begins spring training this week and will play their first game on May 20th, 2010 at the Winnepeg stadium in Canada. Their first schedule home game is June 11th and while that is possible, it may not be very practical. The contractors are working as quickly as possible, but no one can control the weather or delivery of materials to the site. We certainly are hoping to give the Fielders a big hometown welcome in June so please visit the website for weekly updates as we get closer to Opening Day.

There are those who seem to hope the team never plays in Zion; that having the project fail will somehow prove they always knew it would. Well, nothing good ever came from not trying and believing in dreams is where real things begin. We are very fortunate to have been able to keep moving ahead in an economy that simply has brought other development to its knees. Lake County does not have a professional sorts venue and to have Zion become the first with an opportunity like the Fielders should be a celebratory achievement for our community.

The creation of over 300 new jobs at the stadium as well as one hundred more from the retail and theater when we are facing 14.9% unemployment is a blessing. The permanent stadium will be underway as soon as the 2010 season ends, but construction will be ongoing on non-game days regarding parking, detention and site work. The Lake Fielders have chosen the beautiful City of Zion as their hometown and we’re doing all we can to make them feel welcome. So now you may still hear “Who’s on first?”, but hopefully now you no longer have to say “I don’t know!”