A recent study of Seymour’s parks shows a potential need for additional sporting facilities.

But city officials are wondering if they build it, will people come?

The increased number of local youngsters signing up for recreational leagues and travel teams in baseball, softball and soccer is one of the factors driving ongoing discussions at city hall and in the community.

There is an interest among many in attracting larger tournaments in these sports to bring added revenue to the parks department and to local hotels and restaurants.

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Adding improved facilities for running and general exercise, including trails and an indoor recreation center, also are being examined as ways to encourage healthier lifestyles and make Seymour more appealing to existing and potential residents.

Parks director Brent Jameson said the two locations most likely to be targeted for expansion are Kasting Park and Freeman Field Sports Complex, both south of U.S. 50 on the city’s west side.

Freeman Field is where the parks department’s soccer fields are. But as it stands, the fields need maintenance and upgrades to improve drainage, Jameson said.

Soccer is one of the fastest-growing sports here and across the state and country, he added.

The number of participants in area youth traveling soccer teams has doubled over the past few years, and participation in the recreational league has increased by 30 percent, according to a study completed last month by GAI Consultants of Scottsburg.

There are spring and fall soccer seasons. During those seasons, Freeman Field is used almost every day for practices and every weekend for games, Jameson said.

Participation growing

Last fall, more than 400 children were enrolled in Seymour’s soccer program, with nearly 100 more in a tots league for kids ages 2 to 4. Seymour’s travel league had 120 participants. The travel team practices at Freeman Field and typically hosts four home games. The team has to travel to Columbus or Indianapolis to play in bigger tournaments, though, Jameson said.

“The Seymour Soccer Association is growing at a very high rate right now,” he said. “There is a big desire to update that facility to better accommodate their needs.”

Some of the problems at Freeman Field include not enough parking spaces, an inconvenient layout of fields, a need for more fields, and inadequate restroom and concessions area. The park also has accessibility issues because fields are difficult to reach if you are in a wheelchair.

By addressing these issues, Jameson said, Seymour could host soccer tournaments similar to the youth baseball and softball tournaments the city already hosts.

There is some interest in starting an adult soccer league here, which would increase the facility’s use even more, he said.

As for youth softball and baseball diamonds in Seymour, Jameson said the biggest need is to have all of the fields in one central location. Currently, there are four diamonds at Kasting Park, two at Shields Park and two at Kessler Park.

“This makes it a challenge for many reasons when trying to attract different organizations and tournament directors to host large-scale tournaments in Seymour,” he said. “It would mean paying staff at three different parks to run a tournament. Not to mention, the logistics of running three different facilities makes it difficult.”

Recreational youth baseball also is experiencing a record number of participants with just more than 600 participants in 2014, according to youth league representatives.

One solution, recommended in GAI’s study, is for the city to purchase 80 acres adjacent to Kasting Park to add baseball/softball fields and a multipurpose indoor recreational facility similar to a YMCA. That property, south of the park along McDonald Street Road, is privately owned farmland.

‘Not just a dream’

The first phase could include adding five baseball diamonds, restrooms and a concession stand, followed by five more diamonds, additional restrooms, another concession stand and a 1.5-mile fitness track around the property in the second phase.

That would give Kasting a total of 14 diamonds for youth baseball and softball.

Jameson said Seymour has made big strides this year in hosting some medium-sized tournaments, which made a big economic impact in the community.

“During the Little League state tournament that our youth league hosted, the visitor center estimated that $216,000 was brought to the city,” he said. “That was for just 14 teams. Imagine the economic impact if we could attract tournaments with 150 teams.”

And that’s not just a dream, he added.

“This can happen,” he said. “Tournament directors love the centralized location of Seymour with the easy access to I-65. But first, we need the facility to accommodate these types of tournaments.”

Phase three of the Kasting Park project has the potential to include the construction of a 60,000-square-foot or larger indoor multipurpose public recreational facility. Possibilities for the facility include a turf field primarily for year-round soccer, a fitness and wellness center, basketball and volleyball courts, batting cages, an indoor track and supporting space.

Jameson said he believes such a project would have a lot of backing in the community.

“We see this as an opportunity to provide a family recreation center to promote health and fitness within the community,” he said. “This is a need that I hear about often from Seymour residents. As we move along in the process, we will include the public to gauge the amount of interest.”

Families first

The final phase of the Kasting Park expansion would add four multipurpose fields. There also would be a new playground area built for young children.

Karrie Bevers of Seymour said she would love to see the city build an indoor fitness center with a pool and a track. Having such facilities available during the winter or when it rains would be a benefit to many in the community, she said.

“I have lymphedema, and water aerobics is one of the best exercises for me,” she said. “Also, I think an indoor track would be awesome so we don’t have to worry about the weather.”

Darlene Beavers of Seymour said she would like to see a small water park added somewhere, along with additional playground equipment.

“Also, I would love to see a place where the whole family could walk or exercise together,” she said.

Having more activities for kids to do would bring more people to Seymour, added Sarah Elliott of Seymour.

“The closest YMCA to here is Scottsburg,” she said. “If Seymour got a YMCA, it would be great not only for the locals, but it would bring people from outside of Seymour.”

Jameson said there are no financial estimates yet of how much the projects will cost, and all decisions on how they will be funded will be discussed before the projects are approved by the parks and recreation board and the city council.

There may be opportunities for public-private partnerships with community stakeholders to help fund the projects, including Schneck Medical Center, Cummins Inc. Seymour Engine Plant, Seymour Community Schools, the Jackson County Visitor Center, Sports Indiana, the Community Foundation of Jackson County, Pepsi and other local employers.

The projects also likely will require parks and recreation department money and possibly other tax revenue, officials said.

Other improvements needed

Seymour City Council member Darrin Boas said he would like to see the city update Gaiser and Shields parks before any new investment for a new or enlarged park.

“These two parks have been the cornerstone of their neighborhoods for decades and continue to be in great locations within easy walking distance for the local community,” he said.

Britany Schickinger of Seymour said there are small improvements that could be made without costing as much. She recommends the city make the restrooms better, fix water fountains, provide rubber mulch instead of sand around playgrounds, fix broken swings and clean up graffiti and obscenities.

“It’s not really about what you can add, it’s about what could make it better for the children,” she said.

Melissa Lessig of Seymour agreed, saying it’s not more of the same thing that’s needed. She is in favor of the city creating a public dog park.

“There are already many fitness centers in this town and many parks and playgrounds,” she said. “Some need some TLC, make those better, sure, but I still think that a park just for the animals would be cheap to make and maintain.”

Jameson said improving the city’s parks and expanding its offerings is a major priority.

“This is one of the mayor’s initiatives that he is very serious about turning into a reality,” Jameson said. “We need to go through the proper planning steps, but we are pleased with the results of the study and excited about the prospect of updating our sports facilities in order to benefit the community as a whole.”