WestChesterBuzz.com

A youth baseball complex in West Chester is looking for a sponsor to name its fields, as township trustees unanimously voted Tuesday night in favor of allowing its management group to search for sponsorship opportunities.

The West Chester Baseball Complex, which features four well-groomed fields located off Union Centre Boulevard, has an economic impact of just more than $1 million annually, according to the Butler County Visitors Bureau.

Its management group, headed by Mark Dunaway, is seeking the sponsorship opportunity to help the park raise the $110,000 it needs annually to operate and maintain the complex, which hosts 900 youth baseball games each year.

“Our task is a very difficult one. We are competing against other baseball complexes, many of which are larger, and we are also doing it in a sluggish economy,” Dunaway said. “We expect with the signage program we can be on more solid financially footing by reducing the uncertainty of raising that $110,000.”

West Chester does not provide the complex any money for maintenance of the complex. The management group, made up of seven unpaid volunteers, actually pays the township $10,000. That money is used on replacing items in the complex that have reached the end of their life.

Dunaway says the complex is the only one in Cincinnati and one in a handful in the Midwest that is operated on fees that it raises and through advertisements.

“Most baseball operations are supported by the township or cities. It is pretty unusual we are able to do this,” Dunaway said.

The baseball complex cost West Chester $1.3 million to build in 2005. Township officials say it was constructed with tax increment financing and as a tourism driver for the community. Since it was built, the township has contributed $19,000 to the complex.

Posted in: Board of Trustees, Business, Government, News |

Tags: Tags: West Chester Baseball Complex, West Chester Board of Trustees

Owen and Harper Hodgett made use of the ice rink at Beckett Park in West Chester Thursday.

The man-made water feature has been allowed to freeze naturally for ice skating. This is the first time temperatures have permitted skating and it is uncertain how long the rink will remain open.

The water feature was part of $2.09 million upgrade of the park, which was finished in late June. The upgrade included a new shelter, a “natural” playground, a small pond that can used as an ice skating rink in the winter and a 1.25-mile trail that loops around two newly enlarged lakes.

The first development phase of Beckett Park, which was acquired by the Township through a land transfer with the National Park Service in 2000, was completed in 2005.

Approximately $2.8 million of TIF funding was used to complete that phase, which involved the building of the West Chester Baseball Complex.

The second phase, which was completed in 2008, included the re-locating of Muhlhauser Barn and the Christian Moerlein Gazebo. Both structures were donated to the Township. The rental payments for the barn, which is available to rent seasonally, exceeds the cost of its maintenance and upkeep, according to Barbara Wilson, public information officer for West Chester Township.

Beckett Park is 150 acres and straddles Beckett Road near the Union Centre Boulevard intersection.

Park hours are from dawn to dusk.

Posted in: News |

Tags: Tags: Beckett Park, Beckett Park project, Beckett Park West Chester, Muhlhauser Barn, Muhlhauser Barn West Chester, West Chester Baseball Complex, West Chester top 12 stories of 2012, West Chester top stories of 2012

Beckett Park opens its west side after $2 million upgrade

WestChesterBuzz.com will count down the area’s top 12 stories of 2012 this month, concluding with West Chester’s most discussed topic of the year on Sunday, Dec. 30.

The west side portion of Beckett Park officially reopened June 29 after a $2.09 million upgrade that included the construction of a new shelter, a “natural” playground, a small pond that can used as an ice skating rink in the winter and a 1.25-mile trail that loops around two newly enlarged lakes.

The project, which was part of phase III of the Beckett Park development, was funded through a $247,500 grant from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and through $1.7 million of TIF funding.

In addition, a Boundless Playground that opened in early November of 2010 on the east side of the park was also part of the third phase and was funded with $135,000 worth of combined contributions from Procter & Gamble and CVS Caremark.

Prior to the completion of the playground, West Chester Township officials tentatively scheduled for the west side of the park to be open by the end of 2010. That target date was then adjusted to the spring of 2011 after the playground opened.

“In terms of the duration of the project it was an outdoor construction project, so there were weather issues and some contractor issues,” said Barbara Wilson, public information officer for West Chester Township.

“All those kind of things led up to the longer than anticipated construction time frame, but what the Township has always tried to do was make sure the tax payers were getting a quality recreational amenity and that was the end result.”

According to Wilson, the contractor issues and record rainfall totals during the spring of 2011 inhibited the third phase of the project from moving forward.

• Photos: Construction of phase III of the Beckett Park development project

Construction of the third phase included the enlarging of the two lakes on the west side of the park, as well as the development of a paved/mowed trail that loops around the improved water space. (more…)

Posted in: Government, News |

Tags: Tags: Beckett Park, Beckett Park project, Beckett Park West Chester, Muhlhauser Barn, Muhlhauser Barn West Chester, West Chester Baseball Complex, West Chester top 12 stories of 2012, West Chester top stories of 2012

The west side portion of Beckett Park officially reopened June 29 after a $2.09 million upgrade that included the construction of a new shelter, a “natural” playground, a small pond that can used as an ice skating rink in the winter and a 1.25-mile trail that loops around two newly enlarged lakes.

The project, which was part of phase III of the Beckett Park development, was funded through a $247,500 grant from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and through $1.7 million of TIF funding.

In addition, a Boundless Playground that opened in early November of 2010 on the east side of the park was also part of the third phase and was funded with $135,000 worth of combined contributions from Procter & Gamble and CVS Caremark.

Prior to the completion of the playground, West Chester Township officials tentatively scheduled for the west side of the park to be open by the end of 2010. That target date was then adjusted to the spring of 2011 after the playground opened.

“In terms of the duration of the project it was an outdoor construction project, so there were weather issues and some contractor issues,” said Barbara Wilson, public information officer for West Chester Township.

“All those kind of things led up to the longer than anticipated construction time frame, but what the Township has always tried to do was make sure the tax payers were getting a quality recreational amenity and that was the end result.”

According to Wilson, the contractor issues and record rainfall totals during the spring of 2011 inhibited the third phase of the project from moving forward.

• Photos: Construction of phase III of the Beckett Park development project

Construction of the third phase included the enlarging of the two lakes on the west side of the park, as well as the development of a paved/mowed trail that loops around the improved water space. (more…)

Posted in: Government, News |

Tags: Tags: Beckett Park, Beckett Park project, Beckett Park West Chester, Muhlhauser Barn, Muhlhauser Barn West Chester, West Chester Baseball Complex

The West Chester Baseball Complex at Beckett Park has proven to be a “field of dreams” for the community in more ways than one. In addition to providing an exceptional baseball experience for local players, the complex has become a catalyst for tourism in the community.

The tournament-quality baseball complex, operated by West Chester Baseball Partnership, provides the best fields in the Cincinnati area for youth baseball games and attracts youth baseball tournaments from across the country.

Nearly 50 local youth baseball teams played at the West Chester Baseball Complex in 2010 and twelve youth baseball tournaments were hosted at the complex by six different tournament organizations. These tournaments had an economic impact of more than $2.3 million in Butler County.

“Our first year of operating the West Chester Baseball Complex was a successful one, and we are already looking ahead to 2011,” said Mark Dunaway, West Chester Baseball Partnership Board member. “There are already 21 tournaments scheduled at the West Chester Baseball Complex for 2011, 60 percent more than in 2010. What’s more, several local youth baseball teams have already inquired about playing their games at WCBC in 2011.”

Tourism in a community generates revenue for hotels, restaurants, and local businesses. With 2,832 room nights booked at approximately $100 per night, hotels experienced $283,200 in revenue generated by tournaments at the baseball facility alone. When adding in money spent at local businesses and restaurants, the total spending attributed to tournaments at the complex is more than $1.843 million.

Using industry-accepted multipliers to determine the total economic impact of an athletic event, including direct and indirect economic effects, the 2010 tournaments at the West Chester Baseball Complex had an overall economic impact of more than $2.3 million.

The West Chester Township Board of Trustees entered into an agreement with West Chester Baseball Partnership in December 2009. The Partnership serves as operators of the Township-owned facility and is required to make annual payments. West Chester Baseball Partnership made payment to the Township in 2010 as required, including payment to a long-term capital improvements fund held by The Community Foundation of West Chester/Liberty.

Information provided by West Chester Township

Posted in: Business, Government, News, Sports, Youth sports |

Tags: Tags: business, hotels, West Chester Baseball Complex