GENEVA —
The red bleachers at Memorial Field stand rusted and scorched, their structural integrity questionable.
But there could be a new future for Memorial Field, which opened its gates in 1941 and served as the main football field for Geneva Area City Schools before the district contracted with Spire Institute for the use of the complex’s sports facilities.
City, school and Spire Institute officials met to discuss the athletic field, which was damaged by arson in March and has since stood empty of athletes, Geneva City Manager Jim Pearson said.
Spire and the schools have received an offer of settlement from the insurance company from the bleacher fire,” Pearson said. “The schools have inquired if the city has any interest in acquiring the property for community use.”
The fire at Memorial Field caused $175,000 in damage to the permanent bleachers to the left of the football field and track. Three male juveniles were charged for their involvement in the blaze, Police Chief Daniel Dudik said.
The school district leases the field to Spire Institute for $20,000 a year, and holds the lease for another two and a half years, school board member Ford Behm said. The Geneva Midget Football League uses the field, and some Geneva sports teams, which now play at the Spire Institute, use the field and track for practice.
The $20,000 lease fee is the same amount the district would pay to maintain Memorial Field each year, Behm said, and the district is able to use, for free, the state-of-the-art facilities at Spire for soccer games and graduation.
Pearson said the initial meeting included representatives from the city’s engineering firm, CT Consultants.
“They will not only be looking at the structures, but also doing some preliminary work on storm water retention,” Pearson said. “There are flooding issues throughout the property so we need to see if there are some stream restoration or detention areas that might alleviate those issues, but that is unknown at this time. We are going through the process.”
Pearson said city officials hope to meet with City Council soon to discuss potential uses and the logistics of possibly acquiring the property.
“The obvious use would be for park and recreation,” he said. “We want to listen to the community and listen to their wants and needs, and we hope this will work out for what is best for the community. I think people would like to see that property used for its best and highest purpose.”
Pearson said the community has deep, long-standing ties to the field, ties that should be celebrated.
“Memorial Field is a nice piece of property, it is strategically located and it has serviced our community for decades,” Pearson said. “When looking at public use, it could be a real asset for the city, but it always belonged to the schools and until they made a decision on what the future could be for the property, we didn’t have much of a thought about it.”
“But now that they have approached us, we want to take a hard look at it,” he said.
Local News
Geneva looks at uses, remediation of Memorial Field
- Local News
-
-
Jefferson hires new leader for schools
The Jefferson Area Local School District completed its search for a superintendent Tuesday, hiring one of its own to lead the district.
-
Ashtabula County gets a new logo
The Ashtabula County Convention and Visitors Bureau has been working for the past year on developing a brand for the county, and Wednesday, that brand was revealed.
-
NAD, TAG team up to get rid of unwanted pills
There are a lot of unwanted prescription pills in Ashtabula County, and Det. Greg Leonhard of the Trumbull, Ashtabula Group Law Enforcement Task Force hopes to collect them all.
-
Fate of North Kingsville Elementary may be known in July
Members of the Buckeye Local Schools’ Board of Education could decide the future of the now-vacant North Kingsville Elementary School by mid-summer, Superintendent Joseph Spiccia said Wednesday.
-
Family Dollar gives six acres to Buckeye Local School District
Edgewood High School football fans will have plenty of parking options this fall, thanks to a donation from Family Dollar.
-
Ashtabula County Grand Jury indicts 12
EDITOR’S NOTE: The indictment of a person by a grand jury or otherwise is an accusation only and that person is presumed innocent until proven guilty. All information is taken from Ashtabula County Common Pleas Court records.
-
Conneaut man accused of using duct tape to secure girlfriend
A Conneaut man face charges after he reportedly used duct tape to lash his combative girlfriend to a pole in the basement of their Sandusky Street home, police said.
-
FirstEnergy seeks reason for massive Ashtabula County power outage
Humid weather may have played a role in a malfunction that shut down electrical service to a large chunk of Ashtabula County late Tuesday morning, officials said.
-
Ashtabula County I-90 speed limit jumps to 70 mph July 1
As promised, the speed limit on Interstate 90 that bisects Ashtabula County will jump in little more than a month, the Ohio Department of Transportation announced Tuesday.
-
Ashtabula City Council says no to multi-unit apartments
After a passionate hour of debate at a public hearing Monday night, City Council unanimously voted against approving zoning changes at 1936 Carpenter Road.
- More Local News Headlines
-
