Work at Georgetown intersection necessitates DelTech baseball move
By Glenn RolfeGEORGETOWN — There’s a move in play for the Delaware Technical Community College baseball program.
In time for the spring 2025 season, the Owens Campus team will relocate due to the Department of Transportation’s grade-separated interchange project at Del. 18/Del. 404 and U.S. 113.
With the project’s southwest loop, Del. 404 will be closer to the current field and, therefore, too close to long-distance baseballs.
“To be quite honest, in our current location, we already have issues with balls going onto the roadway,” said Dr. Bobbi Barends, vice president/campus director for the Owens Campus. “I’ve been at games where balls have gone through windows when people are driving. It’s not a pleasant thing for anyone involved.”
So, the school’s plan is to move the baseball complex to a spot off Ennis Road. It will join other property owned by the college, including the former Ennis School, which will open as the Bryan Allen Stevenson School of Excellence in fall 2024, and a small farm used by agriculture students.
DelTech’s softball field is not impacted by the road construction.
And, with the work projected to begin next fall, the baseball team will be able to play at the current site during spring 2024, she said.
Planning documents for the new facility, including a grass field, are in the works, said Mike Jackson, DelTech’s vice president for finance.
“It would be early next spring, to be able to have a plan in place to start doing some civil engineering work — at the latest by next summer — meaning grading the location and the field and whatnot. And, after that, (to) be able to mobilize into construction,” he said.
Dr. Barends added, “We are in the process of working with a firm for drawing the estimate for moving the ballfield. It is kind of an active process right now.”
To pay for the approximately $800,000 effort, DelTech will utilize funding from the Transportation Department’s right-of-way purchase of its property and funds allocated in the fiscal year 2023 bond bill.
“The state is paying us for the land they are acquiring. The Bond Bill Committee has given us some additional funds to help relocate the field,” said Brian Shirey, general counsel for the college. “It’s a combination of the money we are receiving from DelDOT for the land they are taking and then additional funds we received for this purpose from the Bond Bill Committee.”
Dr. Barends said improvements could be seen for the players.
“We hate to have to move a field. That’s no fun,” she said. “But we’re looking forward to providing them with a field that is just as good, if not a little better, than what they have now.”
There are also plans for upgrades to the softball field.
Dr. Barends saluted the two sports programs.
“Our baseball and softball teams are exceptional. Our women went to the national championships the last three years. Our men have been to the regional and district championship playoffs the last two years,” she said.
“I will say that they are excellent on and off the field. So, not only are they great athletes, but they are excellent students. They do well in the classroom, and they volunteer much time on the campus. We’re proud of our student athletes.”
She went on to emphasize DelTech’s mission to serve Delawareans. “The majority of our student athletes are Delawareans. That is a real focus of our college president and our administration, that we serve Delawareans. Ninety-six percent of our students are Delawareans, so we focus on recruiting athletes from Delaware.”
