A longtime supporter of a Jasper-area athletic “megapark” complex that would attract travel ball competitions spoke out at the April 1 Walker County Commission meeting, leading to serious discussion about the county commission.
“We're watching Cullman take off and we're sitting here doing nothing,” Oakman's Paul Graves said in a presentation to the committee.
Graves was especially vocal about a sports complex in Jasper, which he has lobbied for over the past decade. He said his grandchildren started promoting the idea when they were 10 or 11 years old. They're too old to play now, though, except for one of his grandchildren coming along.
Graves said he has presented his ideas to elected officials, including the Jasper City Council and Mayor David O'Malley.
“I think it's time for this county to move forward and build this huge park,” he said. “I'm not talking about building it at the airport. I'm talking about building it somewhere on an industrial site (Parkway) with infrastructure in place for traffic to come in and out. is.”
Other cities are building athletic facilities for travel ball, he said, but it's a clean industry because tourists come to town on weekends to shop for things like food, hotels and gas. Ta.
“It makes sense. All the cities that are building them thrive on them,” he said. “And we're sitting still in Walker County. We need to do something.”
Such a complex is being discussed in both Sumiton and Jasper, but progress in both cities has been slowed by costly factors such as land preparation.
A 2021 Sumiton City Council discussion noted at the time that Sumiton's five-field complex could cost between $1.8 million and $2.9 million and require as many as 350 parking spaces. . Engineer Robert Nelson said the only possible grant source for Sumiton at the time was the Land, Water and Conservation Fund, although loan funds were available.
“This end of Walker County, in fact all of Walker County, is growing in travel sports,” Dee Black, North Alabama regional director for the Cullman-based Alabama Baseball Players Association (BPA), told the Sumiton City Council in 2021. “Kids are growing up playing league ball,” he said. “Also, there are about 130 leagues that participate in travel programs. I partner with almost 1,600 teams, which equates to about 16,000 kids across the state.”
He said at the time that on a typical weekend in March, April and May, on average, nine to 15 parks were used for BPA tournaments, with 300 to 400 matches being played. Ta. He said some families who play travel ball travel up to three hours, with 40% of families playing travel ball full-time and 60% playing both local and travel ball. It is said that he is going there.
Graves told the commission on April 1 that women's softball is just as popular as men's baseball, and in some cases more popular, with women's and men's teams traveling around the state every weekend. He said he was there. Men's softball is also booming, with men in their 40s and 50s traveling every weekend.
“If you look at the literature, these cities are booked for 48 to 50 weekends a year,” he said, noting that Cullman has become a popular area for reservations. “And we're sitting here doing nothing.” He said teams have to pay $600 to $800 to play in Cullman, and admission fees range from $10 to $20 per person. It is said to be set in dollars.
The growth of the complex in Cullman has been so successful that last year a women's indoor facility for volleyball and basketball was built next to the ballpark. “You'd be hard pressed to find a community that built something like this that didn't take off,” he says. “And we know that will happen here.”
He said Chairman Steve Miller also supports the idea and has made several statements regarding the idea. He said state Rep. Matt Reed (R-Jasper) and state Senate President Greg Reed (R-Jasper) also support it. “The city of Jasper has shown a desire to do something,” he said.
“Haleyville is small, but we built it a couple of years ago for $5 million,” Graves said, adding that five ballparks will be built around the concession area and combined into one “pod.” He said you can start with that. He pointed to newspaper articles that talked about the economic impact on some cities.
One pod requires a minimum of 50 acres of land, Graves said, adding more pods over the next few years for 10 years, and so on. South Haven, Mississippi, a complex he first saw in 2010 or 2011, has more than 30 ballparks. “In 2011, they told me they had 60 full-time umpires from March to October,” he said.
“This could happen in Jasper. We know it could happen here. We have Interstate 22, we have Industrial (Parkway),” he said. . “There's Walker County Lake. Build this right on the lake and build a campground.'' He knows of a family on a tour who took their camper to Cullman, but still ate at the restaurant. I am. ”
Graves said grants are also available to establish such complexes.
He also noted that there isn't much for children to do in Walker County, and said a complex like this would help them.
“Mr. Graves, you and I have talked about this and I completely agree with you. This is a great thing for the county, the surrounding cities, and the school system,” Miller said. Stated. Children who don't have much to do. “This is an issue that we need to really dig deep into and perhaps create a committee like you and I have talked about.” He said he would know whether he wanted to organize a group or not.
During the commissioners' comment period after the meeting, Barrow said Graves has a “big, good idea,” but he doesn't know which actors — the county, the city, legislators — will work together locally to make it happen. Ta. Barrow said officials could see if land could be excavated in the Walker County Lakes area off the Industrial Parkway.
“It would be beneficial to our county as well,” he said. “Perhaps, Mr. Chairman, I don't know if we can connect it with the agricultural side that we have always thought about and expected.” – an obvious reference to the agricultural center.
If the committee is formed, Graves said he would be happy to serve on it.
