5 days ago
Jack Brown Stadium in Jamestown gets new light system
May 29—JAMESTOWN — Jack Brown Stadium in Jamestown has a new light system that will be more efficient and easier to maintain, according to Amy Walters, executive director of the Jamestown Parks and Recreation District.
"They are operational," she said.
Walters said the new light system doesn't give off light pollution.
"The lights are just very targeted and focused to the field," she said. " ... It's specifically targeted just for the field so it kind of really cleans that up for the neighborhood. We're not lighting everything up."
The new light system, which includes new poles and LED fixtures, was installed in a couple of phases. The old poles and fixtures were removed in late March and early April, Walters said. She said the new light poles were installed at that time. The electrical work was completed in mid-May once the ground was thawed for the underground work.
Walters said the operational costs will be more efficient with the use of LED lights and updated electrical infrastructure.
The old light system was struck by lightning last July and was no longer usable, Walters said.
"They were beyond the age of repair and replacement," she said. "We couldn't get parts any more and all those types of things."
Without any lights, Walters said baseball couldn't be played at night until the new system was installed.
"So they had to adjust game times and some things like limits, number of innings, cut game short, those types of things," she said. "It wasn't a huge impact mostly because the lightning was towards the end of the summer season so it didn't impact a ton of games, but it was a challenge."
The cost of the new light system was a little over $310,500. Walters said more than $68,000 came from insurance and the Parks and Recreation District received $60,000 from a Babe Ruth League grant, $25,000 from Jamestown Tourism, over $6,200 from the Garrison Diversion Recreation Grant Program and $25,000 in private donations. The remaining amount of more than $125,000 is supported by the Parks and Recreation District's general fund, capital improvement fund and gross revenue bond.
Walters said a majority of the gross revenue bond was for the $1.2 million Nickeus Park project with construction starting this summer.
"That in turn is also a grant funded project," she said. "They pay 50% of the cost. We're fundraising the other 50% but we've given our donors up to a five-year pledge period. So the gross revenue bonding is to support that five year pledge period."
