Troy adds a second ball field in Glover Park

• New Glover Park baseball field in action

Two Hudson Booster teams of 12-year-old boys play a game on the new Glover Park baseball field. Photo by Randy Hanson
• From left, Randy Lau, Jim Freund, Jill Berke and Fred Barr

From left, Randy Lau of the Hudson Boosters, Troy Park Board member Jim Freund, Troy Park Board Chair Jill Berke and Fred Barr of the River Falls Youth Baseball Organization pay a visit to the new baseball field in Glover Park. Photo by Randy Hanson

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Young baseball players from Hudson and River Falls are benefitting from the addition of a second field at Glover Park in the town of Troy.

The field was completed last spring, in time for the Hudson Boosters and River Falls Youth Baseball league play that started in May.

Teams of 12-year-old boys from both organizations are using the new field – as well as the one that was already there – for the season that runs into late July.

The field is used every weekday evening and for occasional weekend tournaments.

Randy Lau of the Hudson Boosters approached the town of Troy Park Board three years ago with the suggestion of converting a little-used soccer field into a baseball field.

The Boosters, who this year are organizing play for close to 100 baseball and softball teams, have been in need of additional fields for some time.

Like the Boosters, the River Falls baseball organization was already using the original Glover Park ball field and expressed interest in having a second field, too.

The town of Troy lies between the cities of Hudson and River Falls. Part of the town is in the Hudson School District and part of it is in the River Falls district. Glover Park is on North Glover Road, about a half-mile south of Coulee Trail.

The town of Troy funded the project, using park impact fees collected from real estate developers.

Troy Park Board member Charlie Macdonell served as the project coordinator.

Members of the Hudson Boosters and River Falls Youth Baseball donated some of the work.

Todd Domino, a Booster and owner of a landscaping business, did the excavating.

“We couldn’t have done it at the price we did without the efforts of individuals from both of the organizations,” said Jill Berke, chair of the Troy Park Board.

The project was started in late summer of 2008. Following the initial grading, infield gravel from a UW-River Falls field was laid and backstop and base-line fences were installed.

Some existing fencing and gates were upgraded, and a driveway to a new overflow parking area was constructed. The final grading and seeding took place just before winter.

In the spring of 2009, the finishing work on the infield was completed, including the installation of the pitcher’s mound. Two hundred feet of removable outfield fence was added, and the dugout benches were installed.

Improvements were also made to the original Glover Park ball field.

A shed for storing equipment has been purchased and will be installed near the two ball fields. The city of Hudson is expected to donate some used bleachers that could be installed later this year.

Fred Barr of the River Falls Youth Baseball Organization said having two ball fields in Glover Park will make it a good location for tournaments.

Lau added that the new field provides another place for team practices, which are much in demand.

Other key participants in the project were Troy Town Chairman Ray Knapp, Town Board Supervisor and Park Board member Brian Schwab, Park Board member Jim Freund, and town of Troy employees Gary Parent and Al Hanson.

Tags: glover park, communities, troy, baseball, softball, boosters