The long-term vision is to have a facility that houses ALL outdoor athletic teams for the JH/HS. By making a single complex it creates a “home base” for our teams and community to have access to a state-of-the-art facility.
Further, by moving the football field from its current location, this allows gradual growth and expansion on the current building to offset current space concerns in regards to art, FCS, special education, auditorium and gym space. Ultimately, it allows for areas of growth that currently don’t exist doe to the building being “landlocked” by limited parking and practice/game fields.
Phase I will include a baseball/softball complex that includes a turf field that can be used as one regulation 14U and up baseball field or two 12U baseball or softball fields. This includes fencing, parking, lighting, two scoreboards, a press box, batting cages, dirt work with the full facility in mind, a facility ticket office and restrooms.
Phase II will include a second turf field that can be used as one regulation 14U and up baseball field or two 12U baseball and softball fields, fencing lighting, two scoreboards and batting cages.
Phase III will include a secondary entrance to the Raymond Central campus from Agnew Road and additional parking.
Phase IV will include a turf football field, full track and field facility, community recreational building and a kids playground.
***The phases are flexible and may change based on fundraising interest and progress.***
Our goal is to have funding for Phase I raised by July 2025, with a completion date for Phase I being August 2026. However, as funding becomes available we are prepared to move more quickly if possible.
Turf is a more consistent and available surface and creates a multi-use surface that can be transitioned for many different activities including youth soccer, football, community events and more. With turf, teams and classes will be able to use the facility immediately after rain and teams will experience fewer delays or cancellations due to wet fields.
In addition, turf requires less maintenance and will not stress the school’s water system. Overall, it is less expensive to maintain over 10 years; the replacement timeline for turf is 12-15 years.
The field will be available for use by PE classes, as well as baseball/softball programs from Ceresco and Valparaiso programs. Beyond baseball and softball, the multi-purpose turf fields would also provide space for RCYSA soccer, football and more. Other organizations wishing to use the facility may be asked to pay a fee to utilize the field(s). One benefit of this initiative is that the facility can be used to generate revenue for our current school and community programs.
No. The first phase of this project will be funded by donations, sponsorhips and grants.
Presently our baseball and softball teams do not have a place to truly call home. A new facility like this can also be used for practices for other sports, PE classes and other outdoor school activities. A well-designed, multipurpose facility can build school pride and create a sense of place and belonging that translates to school participation and even academic performance.
A turf baseball/softball field allows for multi-use field access. Using a single footprint we will have three different playing fields that provide more access for tournaments as well as practice space for community ball teams.
Adding a baseball/softball field to the main campus reduces the need for travel to and from practices and games as well as the opportunity for community ball teams to have access to more local facilities.
By having a baseball/softball facility on campus, it eliminates the need for students and coaches to drive to or find transportation to practices after school, which can also be a safety concern with so many young drivers.
A centralized location will build stronger unity among the communities, lessen the stress on the facilities maintenance crews and increase visibility, which will lead to increased involvement and support from the junior high and senior high students.
Yes. The land was purchased by the school a few years ago.
This project will allow for the programs in Valparaiso and Ceresco to have more fields for practice and to utilize when hosting tournaments. It will only enhance the current programs. The current community fields will continue to be used and will be necessary as our youth programs continue to grow.
Due to the lack of space, some youth teams don’t start practice until 8:00 p.m., with the majority of practices taking place during the last month of the school year. These fields will provide additional practice options for our youth programs to help alleviate late night practices and have more practice opportunities when the other fields can not be used due to rain.
Phase 1 will be funding through private gifts and grants raised through the fundraising efforts of the RC Communities Foundation. No tax payer dollars are planned to be used for Phase I.
Raymond Central is currently not able to host conference or district tournaments for baseball or softball. Phase 1 would allow the school district to host events such as these and many more, which includes supporting youth tournaments sponsored by our local youth baseball/softball programs.