Liberty Park Stadium Renovation In Full Swing

Renovation work at Liberty Park Stadium is in full swing now that baseball season is finished.

Professional Contractors and Engineers (PCE), Columbia, is the general contractor on the project, estimated to cost nearly $2.6 million.

At the August meeting of the Sedalia Park Board, said that the money is a match grant. About 70 to 80 percent of PCE's contractors for the baseball stadium project are local companies.

Work began Aug. 7, and when this latest project by PCE is done, there still remains work to be done at the stadium, namely restrooms and locker rooms for the players and umpires. All it takes is money. About $115,000 for that portion of it.

The parking lot will be the last piece of the remodeling puzzle, and that won't be completed until spring or next fall, once all the other construction is totally done, Epple stated, and that's by design to keep from damaging the newly-finished lot by large, heavy-duty construction equipment.

A total of 10 teams use Liberty Stadium over the course of a season, in addition to Kaysinger Conference teams from Northwest, Tipton, La Monte, Cole Camp, etc.
Parks & Rec is awaiting a bid for Wi-Fi service at Liberty Stadium from Fastwire.

Park Board Vice President Roy Poynter noted that he has received a few phone calls concerning the chain link fencing at Liberty Stadium. He assured the callers that the chain link was temporary and that the original wooden fencing would return once the renovation project is complete.

At the latest meeting of the Sedalia Park Board, Board President Jerry Greer was in charge of the six-minute meeting, in the absence of Parks & Rec Director Amy Epple, who also serves as Sacred Heart High School's head volleyball coach. (The Lady Grems played Tipton Thursday night).

Check-ins for August at the Heckart Community Center totaled 15,610, with $82,815 in transactions, down slightly from $89,533.93 last August.

Attendance at Liberty Pool for the last two months it was open (August & September) was 2,456.

Matt Harris, parks projects manager, reported that he and Epple met with City of Sedalia Projects Manager Jeremy Stone about a stormwater project on Liberty Park Blvd. Plans call for 85 to 90 angle parking spaces created between the cement pond and Stadium Boulevard as part of the project.

Theron Broadfoot is working on a plan to reroute the leak at Liberty Pool to to manhole CE4-52 of the City's sanitary system.

One bid for a retaining wall has been received this far for the new playground equipment at Katy Park. Two more bids are expected.

Also at Katy Park, B&P Excavating was the lower bidder at $7,000 to remove the old playground equipment to make way for the new. It was noted that Poort Construction's bid was $9,458 and C&E Excavating's bid was $12,390.

Some of the upcoming events for Parks & Rec include “Things That Go & United Way's Day at the Park” Saturday, Sept, 14 from 9 to 1; E-sports Super Smash Brothers Tournament Sept. 21 from 10 to 3:30; “Pumpkin Splash” Oct. 11 from 5:30 to 7; “Esports Fortnite Tournament” Oct. 12 from 10 – 4; “Boo Bash” on Oct. 18, Outdoor Movie Night Oct. 19; and “Trunk or Treat” Oct. 25.