After hearing pleas from Westbrook Little League (WLL), the Board of Selectmen unanimously voted on March 8 to approve renovations to Ted Lane Field that will improve safety and allow the field to be used for both softball and baseball—at no cost to the town.

To ensure that both boys and girls can enjoy the superior field, WLL asked the selectmen last fall for approval to turn the grass infield to clay baseball field. No resolution was reached at the meeting on Oct. 28, 2021. However, WLL vowed to come back and ask again once more information was gathered and a new iteration of the BOS was in place following the November election.

After more than an hour of discussion, the BOS voted unanimously to approve the request at the March 8 meeting. WLL President Clinton Bonner explained to the Harbor News that the organization was seeking permission for two different requests: to convert the grass infield into a clay infield and to flatten the pitcher’s mound.

“It will allow for dual use,” said Bonner.

“The work is 100 percent funded by Little League,” Bonner added.

The project will cost about $10,000, the bulk of which will be used for materials and shipping, according to Bonner.

Back in the fall, Bonner outlined the issues with the fields in town. First, there was the safety issue. Ted Lane Field is the site of many of Westbrook’s civic events like the muster and carnival as well as a Little League field. Due to such heavy and varied use, Bonner said the field can get chewed up and create issues.

“There’s nobody to blame. When the field has other uses—as it should; we’re a small town and we need to use the space we have—the field can get hard to maintain,” said Bonner.

However, with a chewed-up infield, Bonner said that over the course of the baseball season the balls can take bad and unpredictable hops.

Describing the issue in 2021, Bonner contended he wasn’t talking about routine unlucky bounces, but plays that could result in injury due to a poorly maintained playing surface.

“In summer ball when you get to 11 and 12 years old, some of these kids can really sting the ball and it can be unsafe if a ball catches the lip of the grass,” Bonner said at the time.

Now, the plan is to convert the infield into a clay or dirt infield. This way there won’t be a worry about maintaining the grass and the field would be suitable for both softball and baseball. Bonner said that a rubber mound will be brought in for baseball and removed as needed for softball.

“It’s not an unprecedented move. A lot of area towns do the same thing,” Bonner said about the mounds. “We will provide the rubber raised mounds for the boys.”

The second issue with the field, according to Bonner, is that until now, the girls who played softball were relegated to a field with worse conditions. Bonner said that the girls usually play at the Westbrook High School, or occasionally in Old Saybrook, which he said are “fine” fields, but the Ted Lane Field has a better field, a public address system, a concession stand, and is more prestigious, to some.

“It’s a marquee place to play. Right now, they’re really removed from what the boys have,” Bonner said last year.

Bonner said that depending on the weather, he’s hopeful that the field work will be done ahead of opening day.

“The first game is scheduled for the week of April 25. The goal is to have the work done by then. It depends on the weather and there shouldn’t be supply chain issues, but you never know,” said Bonner.

As an added benefit to redoing the field with clay, Bonner said the town should see long term reductions in maintenance.

“We think that overall, the maintenance will be easier. We orderd a bit extra clay so that if needed we can throw a little bit more down after big events,” said Bonner.

“I’m just so filled with gratitude, first to the BOS for reconsidering, as well as to the parents and community for helping us elevate the program,” said Bonner.

“The participation from the community was outstanding. We had seven or eight parents come who brought their kids an we even had kids speak at the meeting and give their support. It was great to see,” said Bonner.