Officials are expected on Tuesday to authorize funds to upgrade a planned extended netting project at Boomers Stadium, the home of the Schaumburg Boomers (independent; Frontier League).
In a vote on Tuesday, the village board is expected to approve $57,134 in funding to address the ballpark’s protective netting. That total would come in addition to $132,000 that was authorized in the spring for a planned extended netting installation, and would allow for certain upgrades to that project.
The extra funds will lead to a thinner netting that is expected to minimize obstructions, along with taller support poles. If the project moves forward as expected, work on the extended netting could be completed later this month. More from The Daily Herald:
While the earlier decision was to extend the safety netting behind home plate to the outfield end of both dugouts — the new standard for professional baseball in the U.S. — today’s proposed change will mean taller and better positioned poles, as well as thinner netting to provide fans with better views.
None of the changes have been made yet, but could start later this week and be completed during a stretch of away games from July 23 to 30, Schaumburg Boomers General Manager Michael Larson said.
The Schaumburg Park District co-owns the stadium with the village of Schaumburg, and its board of commissioners has already signed off on the upgrade as part of this year’s maintenance, Executive Director Tony LaFrenere said. The park district will reimburse the village for its half of the expense, he added.
The 2018 season has been marked by a variety of protective netting projects at ballparks around baseball. It was previously revealed that all 30 MLB teams would have new protective netting on Opening Day, and many clubs at the lower levels of professional baseball–including the affiliated minor leagues and independent ranks–have followed suit. More of our coverage on extended netting can be found here.