Lakeshore Baseball Club to Help Muskegon Maintain Campbell Field

Andrew Trzaska | March 8, 2011

Based on an approval by Muskegon’s City Commission on Monday, the Lakeshore Baseball Club will aid Muskegon in maintaining the baseball diamond at Campbell Field several months out of the year.

The essential agreement is that the Lakeshore Baseball Club’s middle school-age leagues will use the field for practices and games during the months of April and May, including overflow from the heavily-used Marsh Field that the Club (LBC) also is involved with.
In exchange, the LBC would provide upkeep of the field for the city in the months they use it.

Jim Grevel, representative for the LBC, said over 250 games were played at Marsh Field last year, and 96 were already scheduled for the April and May of 2011.

“Basically, we’re running out of field, which is a good problem to have.”

Grevel said that having the ability to schedule across two fields could lead to more participation by out-of-town travel teams.  With more field time available, traveling teams could possibly play more games over a weekend, making a trips more worthwhile.

The board appeared to be mostly in support on the arrangement. Commissioner Spataro did state during the meeting that he hoped no one league would monopolize the field.

“It sounds like everyone’s working together which is what we want to hear, but we want to make sure that our historic little leagues continue to have time to play.”

Agreement and consensus was a focus of Monday’s discussion, with Grevel and Muskegon West Little League representative Bob Richardson each saying that the two leagues were working out schedules between themselves so they and other groups would share the field.

“We have no intention in displacing anyone… all we want to do is help,” said Grevel.

Use and care by the LBC in April and May would transition into other Little League use from June through the rest of the summer, at which time the city’s maintenance of the field would resume.

In terms of finances, the LBC has identified a donor who will provide the necessary funds to bring the field up to regulation.