Jul 18, 2019 | Jesse Edmunds | 1151 views
OHMBA Continues to Invest in Diamond Development
In order to ensure we have adequate facilities to serve our membership, for many years Orangeville & Headwaters Minor Baseball Association has been tasked with reinvesting league funds in diamonds owned by the towns and school boards. The reality for OHMBA members is that no new baseball diamonds have been built in Orangeville in over 10 years, and we have actually seen lots of diamonds become abandoned due to a lack of municipal & school board funding to keep the diamonds maintained and playable...
While sports like hockey and lacrosse benefit from shared multi-functional arena and recreation centre facilities, baseball diamonds are used for baseball, and rental fees collected by the owners barely cover the cost of maintenance, let alone investments to upgrade. OHMBA has seen player enrollment double in just the past 3+ years; with roughly 800 players registered this year, and the need for facility improvement continues to require financial investment from the league.
Past investments on diamonds facilitated through OHMBA league finances have included the installation of magnetic bases, the expansion/replacement of infield playing surfaces to allow for diamonds to be playable, and the installation/repair of protective fencing around our backstops and baselines. The 2019 season is no different, and we have coordinated with municipal governments and school boards to allow OHMBA to carry out work on a few of local diamonds.
During the week(s) of July 29th; and possibly August 5th (weather permitting), there will be upgrades made to diamonds at Cardinal Woods, Mono Centre, and Parkinson. Every effort has been made to minimize the impact to game/practice locations, and the current contractor schedule may only require 1 practice to be moved. As with any construction related project, schedules can change for multiple reasons, not the least of which includes impacts due to adverse weather. We ask that our members double check their schedules/diamond assignments during these two weeks, while the league will do whatever possible to avoid teams having to be re-assigned.
We thank everyone for their patience during this time, and we hope that the upgrades help continue to allow OHMBA to deliver a positive experience for all of our members.