Have you seen Barbara Diane Colin Park?
Holy heck! Brand new bleachers, concession, dugouts and everything. But no view!
Something sure went wrong here with this design. I don’t know if anybody else has noticed this yet, just walking to the ball stand benches is like walking into a box. Big open field out there, but no view.
No matter where a person sits on the bleachers, you can’t see most of the game being played. The player dugouts built right up to the foul lines and the bleachers cut off the view. You can’t sit on the sidelines and watch the game either. Again the dugouts are built too far forward to see.
If you’re a player in the dugouts, only if you sit far to the left or the right of the different dugout benches could you watch the game being played at the mound. But there’s a total view block to both first and third base and the umpire and coach positions there. Also I think building a player’s dugout on the foul line could possibly be a bit of a safety issue for any pop fly balls along the infield foul line. It looks to me like no other ball field design I’ve seen before.
Wide open spaces, acres of land—and a ball diamond built so close together it feels like being in a shoe box with about half the view.
I don’t know how any team would enjoy playing this field. Be hard to visually communicate with your players or team from all angles. And as a spectator—pretty much the same. No view and the best seat in the house actually isn’t a seat but a standing area in front of the concession and right behind the concession support down beams. Greatest view indeed!
So to conclude. No view. Umpires and coaches unable to see or communicate with each other. No room for even a “batter up” warm up area and I’m sure that any sanctioned game couldn’t go ahead on this field as it is.
The city could, and should, fix this “design flaw.” But take a look for yourself and maybe let your council know how you feel about this field.
Herb Stumpf, Greenwood
