The City of Prince George is hosting an information session on Thursday, January 25 in the Kin Lounge (2187 Ospika Boulevard) from 5-8 p.m. to inform the public of its plans for investing in and caring for its baseball diamonds and sport fields. The event is part of the city’s 2018 ball diamond and sport field Strategy, approved by council during its January 22 meeting, which also aims to revamp the ways the city works with the local clubs and sport teams who use the facilities.
Attendees will have the opportunity to review the strategy, speak with city officials, and provide feedback on the plan.
“The City of Prince George has developed the 2018 Ball Diamond and Sport Field Strategy to help guide the strategic investment of ball diamonds and sport fields in Prince George,” said Strategic Parks Planner, Laurie Kosec, in a press release. “Many of these facilities were developed decades ago and both the city and exclusive user rental groups are challenged to keep up with a number of growing demands given the current infrastructure, operational models, and cost recovery.”
As part of the strategy, city representatives connected with local sport groups and key stakeholders to gather feedback and analyze the ways the facilities are used and the partnership agreements for sporting programs and tournaments.
The 2018 ball diamond and sport field strategy outlines a number of key focus areas:
- Ball diamond and sport field investment
- Ball diamond and sport field usage
- Tournament hosting
The potential options and scenarios for a future ball diamond and sport field system would consider a full range of opportunities such as developing or upgrading grouped facilities in centralized locations, reviewing and refining operational models, and sharing facilities or resources.
“The 2018 Ball Diamond and Sport Field Strategy was prepared with consideration of the existing inventory, current maintenance and operations, community feedback, benchmarking, and analysis. The strategy includes key focus areas for ball diamond and sport field investment, usage, and tournament hosting that will be pursued by City staff to help improve the sport delivery system,” said Kosec. “The ultimate culmination of this work will set a path for ball diamond and sport field delivery that will help meet the needs of the community today and into the future.”
The strategy is available online on the City website. Additional meetings will be held with user groups through the winter and spring.
