|
|
|
 History of BAGSAI |
|
History Of BAGSAI - Contributed by Ron Decosse
While traveling to the ASA Nationals in Boulder, Col. with the Dine-A-Mate
team that I coached in 1987, I was thinking about how we could develop a
softball complex along the lines of those that I had seen in other areas of
the country. There had been much discussion in our area about doing
something, but no one had every made a real serious effort. Money, of
course, was the main problem, along with finding a suitable site. It
seemed to me that the only way to get something started was to work with
the County and other softball enthusiasts - fortunately we had many in our
area - to try and pool resources and ideas. My thought was that if we
could approach the County with a solid plan, that maybe we could get
something done. Knowing that money would not be available, my idea was to
have the county provide the site and we (I didn't know then who we was)
would raise money and get people to donate their efforts. On the way back
to Binghamton I discussed my ideas with Leo Fahey, and decided to give it a
try.
Bob Moppert was at that time a member of the Br. Co. Legislature and a good
friend of mine. I called Bob and asked him to join me for breakfast. I
told him that I had an idea that I wanted to run by him. Basically, we
wanted to find a site that the county would lease us for $1.00 a year, and
that we would raise the money necessary to develop a softball complex. We
talked about the benefits that such a complex would bring to the area, and
what sites might be available. Bob thought the idea had merit and arranged
for Leo, Norm Aprile, Lou Staley, and me to meet with then County Executive
Carl Young to get his reaction. Our approach was that we were not asking
for money - that got their attention - but only for a site to develop.
Carl bought in to the idea and suggested that we look at a couple of places
that would be feasible.
The first site we looked at was the current site of BAGSAI. It was strewn
with old tires, items that people had dumped. a dirt bike trail, and was
generally pretty ugly. It also had a severe slope. But it did have
possibilities. The location was great, which was a prime concern.
Together with Wendy Morgan, one of my players, we measured the site and put
together a rough map of what was available. I then put together a site
plan, containing 4 fields and met again with the count officials. At that
time, Bill Barber and Larry Ricetedder became involved, and things began to
happen. By the end of October, Larry had done an official plan, a proposal
had been submitted to the Legislature for approval, and we were out
soliciting help. The proposal was approved for a ten year lease and we met
throughout the winter to finalize site plans and deal with obstacles -
mostly the concern of the neighbors that we were going to have beer
drinking, loud mouthed players using the complex, and add to the traffic
congestion of the area.
The county approved the proposal and construction was started in the spring
of '88. The original estimate of the cost of the project was $750,000.
Money was raised from many sources, mostly grants that Leo and I put
together for approximately $225,000. Major grants were received from the
Hoyt Foundation, the Klee Foundation, Olums, the Decker Foundation and many
local agencies, including the local ASA, The county had agreed to provide
all of the labor and inkind services - we would pay the bills. We became
incorporated as BAGSAI thanks to the efforts of Dave Gouldin and Tom Hull -
this was a major undertaking. The site preparation was a major project, as
tons of dirt had to be moved. Rather than pay to have dirt hauled away, we
decided to incorporate it into the mounds that we now use. The idea was
that it would save money for bleachers, and provide a more casual way to
watch games.
By the end of the Fall of '88, we were able to seed 2 of the fields, and
make plans for fencing, backstops, etc. In the spring of '89 we were able
to install the first backstops on fields 1 and 2, and make arrangements for
our first tournaments. A tent was used for each weekend, thanks to Bob
Markert, who made them available. Work continued on the other fields. The
first infield mix used was brick dust, which everybody who played on it
hated. It was free and drained well, but was just too course and caused
problems when sliding. This was soon replaced by Beam Clay, and then the
more affordable Martin mix that is used today.
By the end of 1990 all 4 fields were in operation and we were running 5
or 6 tournaments a year, some with as many as 32 teams.
At that point, we were able to construct the restroom, concession area.
This enabled BAGSAI to become self-sufficient with the revenue obtained
from concessions and tournament fees.
To be honest with you, the impact of BAGSAI has far exceeded my original
vision that day in 1987. Hundreds of games have been played, thousands of
girls have had the opportunity to play on quality fields, and the community
has benefited from the many parents who have traveled to Binghamton for
softball. Although their have been some negatives, the positives far outweigh
the negatives.
Their are too many people who helped along the way to possibly list names
without leaving some out. The support from Bill Barber has been key. Norm
Shadduck has spent countless hours after succeeding me in running the
complex. Dave Gouldin has handled the bulk of the legal work - their was
plenty, and Leo Fahey has been a major contributor of time and effort.
Hopefully those who succeed Norm will continue to make BAGSAI a great place
for softball.
|
|
