Wichita City Council members have given unanimous approval to a project to construct a fourth baseball field at McAdams Park for use by the League 42 youth program.
League 42 is named in honor of Jackie Robinson, the first African-American in Major League Baseball, and it provides an opportunity for urban youngsters ages 5 to 14 to play baseball without the higher costs of other leagues. The league had its first season in 2014 and has had steady growth each year.
Wichita Park and Recreation Director Troy Houtman said the league is capped at 600 youngsters, but still has had difficulty scheduling games with only three fields for its five leagues of players. If there is a cancellation, scheduling make-up games has been difficult.
The league has raised money to build a fourth field at McAdams Park and it will have artificial turf to match the third field, along with lighting. It’s expected that the new field will be ready for play in 2023. League 42 spokesman Bob Lutz said the league will be looking to raise money to install artificial turf at the other two fields at some point.
League 42 will pay the cost of the construction and the field will be donated to the city.
