A Don McCormack column: Landmark stadium gets facelift

By DON McCORMACK - donmac@suite224.net Sports Editor

Paying another visit to the variety store...



Spartan pride

A friend said to me the other day, “Have you been through Conneaut and seen what's going on with the football stadium? It's amazing what they've been able to do there in less than a year!”

Municipal Stadium has been a landmark in the community located in the northeast corner of Ashtabula County since it was constructed in 1937. Like any community facility, it served its people dutifully, providing the stage for football games, track meets, soccer matches, band concerts, graduations and countless other activities.

But alas, as is the case with any Depression-era structure, Father Time's relentless pursuit of it finally became too much for it to handle and it resulted in concrete bleachers becoming unsafe and as a result, unusable for the 2009 season.

But Conneaut officials found a way to make it work and got through the 2009-10 school year with what they could put together.

Well, as the aforementioned friend said to me, what a difference a year makes!

We'll turn the microphone over to Conneaut athletic director Joel Taylor, who has been at the fore for what's been going on in the last several months at Stadium and Maple Avenues.

“For the 2010 fall sports season, the fans will see new bleachers with a seating capacity of approximately 1700,” he said. “Three hundred of those seats will be numbered captain chairs with arm rests and comfortable backs. These will be sold individually with a season's pass for all football games.”

“Also new, for the first time in the stadium's 73-year history, the home fans will sit on the south side.”

But wait, there's more.  

“Fans will also see a new press box perched atop of this new seating,” Taylor said. “The press box will contain state-of-the art technology, including Internet access and a sound system. New speakers will also be added to the stadium to improve the audio experience for the fans.

“Fans will continue to see a beautifully maintained natural grass field, second to none.”

But that is only a portion of a big-picture project that's being done in and around Municipal Stadium.

“This plan is being completed in phases with the use of private funding in the hope that our entire community, especially our young people, will benefit,” Taylor said. “There are future plans. These plans would include:  new restroom and locker room facilities, new concessions and storage areas, and a band shell to house the Conneaut High School band.

“On areas of the property adjacent to the football field are plans for tennis courts and a track/soccer facility.”

Taylor doesn't try to hide or contain his sense of enthusiasm and pride for what's transpired in his district and community, nor should he. Let's face it, the high school gymnasium and football field are true hubs of smalltown America. People who live in towns such as Conneaut are true blue-collar, hardworking folks who take a great deal of pride in making sure the young people of their community receive as much, if not even more, support to succeed than they did during their formative years.

“Last year, many people in the school system and the community came forward to assure that our fall stadium sports teams (football and soccer) would have a place to play,” Taylor said. “Due to the demolition of the old stadium structure, there was a period of time in the spring and early summer of 2009 when it looked as though there was no hope for that to occur. Although some people would call the conditions of last season primitive, anyone involved could only view the situation as of triumph of the human spirit.

“That same spirit continues today with the present stage of the project.”

And you can bet that spirit will be on display for the world to see when coach Ken Parise's Spartan gridders open the home portion of their 2010 season in Week 2 (Conneaut plays at Ledgemont in its opener Friday, Aug. 27) when former Northeastern Conference rival Lakeside, coached by former Conneaut assistant coach and still resident Bill Lipps, comes to town Friday, Sept. 3.

“Various elements of the community have pulled together such as the school system, our local government, as well as local businesses and generous individuals in an effort to make this plan a reality,” Taylor said. “It is definitely a work in progress and by no means complete, but I don't think that it is possible to pass the area of Stadium and Maple Avenue and not have a sense of pride.  

“Pride, not only in the current and potential outcome of this project, but pride in our community and the effort of the people working together for this to happen.”



Great choice

A tip of our cap to Madison, which has made an excellent choice in tabbing Blue Streaks baseball coach John Dragas to be its new high school athletic director, replacing Jim Pinelli, the former Harbor High School football star, who retired after more than three decades in education after the 2009-10 school year.



He's a Bearcat

Perry's standout two-way lineman, Chad West, has made a verbal commitment to attend and play Division I football for the Cincinnati Bearcats.

The 6-foot-6, 230-pound West, one of three Division I recruits for coach Matt Rosati's Pirates -- the others being quarterback-safety Mitchell Hokavar and tight end-linebacker Anthony Kukwa — chose Cincinnati over Ball State and West Virginia.

West, Hokavar, Kukwa and the rest of Rosati's Pirates open their 2010 season Aug. 27 against Riverside at Riverside Stadium.



Twist and turn

Former Grand Valley multisport standout Ray Harriman, who had resurrected the high school football program at Newbury before being hired as head coach at Berkshire High School in February, now finds himself a coach without a position.

His contract as head high school football coach was rescinded by Berkshire, where he is a teacher, in June because of a legal matter. The matter is still pending.

McCormack is the sports editor of the Star Beacon. Read his blog at donmac1.blogspot.com. Reach him at donmac@suite224.net.

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