Madison Baseball Field Project Now Likely On Hold

By Jack Kramer, Correspondent

MADISON, CT – Count the Jaycee Field renovation project to be another potential victim of the state budget mess. There is $75,000 budgeted to fix up the field in this year’s budget.

At the most recent Board of Selectmen meeting, First Selectman Tom Banisch said he is “starting to have second thoughts as to whether it is the right time to spend $75,000 on a baseball field that doesn’t have that much wrong with it. We can do some remedial work and fix it.

“I’d like to take a second look at that,” Banisch said.

Banisch added: “It is programmed to be spent, but with the way things are going with the state and the condition of our finances moving forward I think it deserves a second look.”

Banisch said doing some remedial work instead of more extensive work such as replacing dugouts, etc. is what he believes might make more sense.

The first selectman has director Recreation Director Scott Erskine to talk to the contractor to discuss getting the field in shape short of spending the $75,000 budgeted.

“We had hoped to do the work this fall,” Banisch said. “We still can, if he deems it necessary, but we’re checking to see.”

The state of Connecticut is still without an overall budget – the last state in the country that doesn’t have a budget in place.

Every budget that has been proposed has towns such as Madison, taking big-time hits as far as dollars being allotted from the state.

Most of that allotment is comprised of money the town received in education grants from the state.

Photos by Jack Kramer