Residents of Martins Ferry, the city needs you.
In particular, it’s the Martins Ferry Civics and the hundreds of boys and girls doing the asking because it is them who call Fodor Field home every spring and summer.
The Civics started fundraising back in June for a light project for the facility, the city’s main ball field and the centerpiece of the city park, but the field already has lights, one might say. The glow has been seen, one may testify.
Yes, it is true – Fodor does have lights – but those lights are old, losing their viability, and are expensive to maintain.
“From talking to past Civics members, we’re guessing they are about 50 years old,” said Tom Regis with the Martins Ferry Civics. “When we went to Erb Electric—that’s our contractor for this project—they said we could see an 82 percent reduction in electric usage from updating the lighting system.”
From hosting tournaments to energy savings over time, the project eventually will pay for itself. What the Civics organization is planning to do is erect four light towers on the field, plus one that will light up the adjacent park, too.
That means better—and more efficient—light coverage for not only Fodor Field but the city park as well, so when the Betty Zane Days festival is held, or FallFest and or live music, illumination will be greatly increased.
And the Cost?
Yes, there’s always a cost, and Regis relayed that Erb noted the Civics will need about $70,000 total for the towers and installation.
Fundraising, while slow initially because the Civics were letting the summer Little League season wind down, will be ramping up soon. Prior to the Ohio State-Notre Dame football game to start the college football season, the Civics put on a football board as one fundraiser.
They’ve also been going around town, talking with local businesses and seeing who is able to help. Unified Bank is on board, naturally, because the bank is the official Fodor Field sponsor after signing a 10-year contract with the non-profit.
Last week, Civics members offered up a public thank you to Mike and Renee Miklas from Martins Ferry Hardware for their generous donation to the project. Not to be outdone, the City of Martins Ferry itself is lending a hand.
“We have a great working relationship with Mayor (John) Davies and Andy Sutak,” Regis said. “They’ve helped out immensely with this and actually, Andy got us a grant through ODNR that will offset $19,000 of the project.”
There are talks of nights at the races and steak frys to further add to the fundraising coffers, but Regis noted he is always thankful for the continued generosity of the businesses in the Purple City, along with its citizens.
“The businesses have always supported us well,” he noted. “We’ve been a little slow getting the ball rolling, but because of the grant, we have to get moving by November, so it’s time to kick it into high gear.”
Plenty of Use
In addition to the Martins Ferry teams that utilize Fodor for both practice and home games, the Civics hosts an annual Pinto tournament as well as a mustang tournament.
Preseason and postseason tournament games for both softball and baseball are held on the field.
That’s its primary function. It also comes in handy during festivals, and with the added light coverage provided by the aforementioned towers, it can also help further expand potential offerings at the park.
Those looking to donate or get involved can contact the Civics through its Facebook page, or call Regis directly at 740-296-0123.
