By Jennie Miller
C & G Staff Writer

SOUTHFIELD — Batter up.

Brother Rice High School officials have proposed developing what would be the state’s premier amateur baseball field at Inglenook Park, built entirely in synthetic turf from fence to fence.

The park, located at 20901 W. 12 Mile in Southfield, currently has four baseball diamonds that serve the community. What the school is proposing is a potential 15-year lease of the southwest field that comes with a fully funded renovation, complete with lighting, four-post backstop netting, fenced-in benches for each dugout, two bull pens and a 20-foot-high wall 360-feet out in center field.

Along with the school’s proposal is the Southfield Parks and Recreation Department’s desire to spruce up the other three fields, albeit to a much lesser extent, but with the possible inclusion of lighting, as well as an expansion of the Inglenook parking lot, also with lighting.

“It was a great presentation,” said Southfield City Councilman Don Fracassi.

“I think it’s a very attractive project,” echoed City Council President Joan Seymour.

For 44 years, Brother Rice’s baseball program had operated out of the Birmingham YMCA. The city’s recent decision to expand that facility left the high school without a home for its Warriors baseball team. The 2.4 miles between Inglenook Park and the private Bloomfield Hills high school make it an ideal location, according to Brother Rice President John Birney.

“We’ve been looking for a new long-term home, and this is a public-private partnership that we think offers a win-win situation,” Birney said.

The only other baseball field in the state of Michigan similar to the one proposed by Brother Rice is owned by the Traverse City Beach Bums.

“We are proposing to do the entire field in synthetic turf, from fence to fence,” Birney said, comparing other details of the possible diamond to those of the University of Michigan and the home of the Detroit Tigers, Comerica Park.

A bonus of this new field would be that it allows for multiple uses, because of the lack of maintenance required to keep it up.

“It offers no restrictions whatsoever — you could literally go from a baseball game to a soccer game or whatever game by picking up the bases,” Birney said. “They’re playable all the time. If there’s a rain storm, when the rain stops, you can go out there and you don’t even know it had rained. … We are real strong believers in synthetic field turf. There’s no lawn cutting, sod repair or watering (required) and no fear of grass exhaustion. We think there’s a definite benefit to the city, as well as to us.”

Cost for the turf, the dugouts, the fencing, backstop netting and batting cages totals between $1.25 million and $1.75 million. Lighting for one of the fields is between $150,000 and $200,000.

“We have a major donor who is willing to fund this project, and we are in the process of ascertaining the exact number,” Birney said. “We’re trying to do due diligence on the lighting.”

The school would not be required to pay for the lighting for all four baseball diamonds, according to a consensus of Southfield City Council members in attendance at a meeting Aug. 11, who discussed the issue for 2 1/2 hours before voting 4-1 in favor of moving forward with the proposal.

While he supported the plans, Councilman Sidney Lantz refused to vote in favor of the matter without the explicit assurance from planners that a cell tower would not be erected along with the lights. Councilman Myron Frasier and Councilwoman Sylvia Jordan were not in attendance.

“I think the project is fantastic,” said Fracassi. “Let’s build the field. It’s a no-brainer.”

Sprucing up the park and adding lighting were included in the Southfield Parks and Recreation Department’s master plan.

“I think this is a wonderful opportunity for a great partnership if we can work out the numbers,” said Southfield Mayor Brenda Lawrence.

The Brother Rice advisory board will review the proposal during its next scheduled meeting, Sept. 6. The matter is expected to be brought before the Southfield City Council once again for discussion at its Sept. 8 committee meeting and for approval on Sept. 15.

Residents who live within 350 feet of Inglenook Park will be personally notified of the plans by the city, according to Nick Banda, the city’s director of planning and economic development.

You can reach Staff Writer Jennie Miller at jmiller@candgnews.com or at (586) 279-1108.