Come spring when those involved with youth sports get reminded of the moody Midwest weather, one of the region’s premier destinations for tournament baseball will have an added amenity to bat away Mother’s Nature’s curveballs.
That’s because the infields of three ball diamonds at Stuart Sports Complex are now outfitted with artificial turf, making for near-instant playability at the Fox Valley Park District complex recognized regularly for its game day experience.
“A gullywasher an hour before a tournament might take two to six hours to get a field turned over and dried,” says Jerad Campbell, director of operations for the FVPD. “The project was rooted with the idea of providing a better product and ensuring games will be scheduled – and played – for our affiliates.”
Made possible by a state tourism grant of $500,000 awarded by the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity, which the District was required to match, the project included installation of turf on the diamonds at the south end of Stuart.
Work was completed the week before Christmas, and games are scheduled to begin April 26, after the “sod around the turf takes and we button-up anything else to ensure these fields are absolutely ready,” says Aaron Reinhart, the FVPD’s athletic turf superintendent. “Next year, schedules can be made starting April 1.”
The 2024 season (April 1 through October 31) featured more than 1,400 baseball games across Stuart’s eight ballfields, including four at the north end of the complex which still feature dirt infields. The number of games includes weeknight play and weekend tournaments, which draw up to 64 teams apiece.
“This project gives us an opportunity to provide recreation when on certain days Mother Nature might have other plans,” Reinhart says. “As a parent, I don’t want to hear we had games canceled and then tacked on at the end of the year when I might have vacation planned. This provides some welcome security that you’re getting games in. If it’s not pouring, thundering or lightning, you’re playing.”
The artificial surface is dark brown in color to contrast the emerald outfields, which Reinhart’s staff keeps manicured at three-quarters of an inch. Each turfed infield is equipped to accommodate youth base distances of 50, 60, 65, 70 and 80 feet, while portable pitching mounds add to the fields’ swift adaptability.
“It keeps us at the cutting edge of where the industry’s going,” Campbell says. “Every kid wants to feel like he or she is in the big leagues, and this project takes Stuart to the next level.”
‘Premier youth destination’
Fuel to the area’s economic engine, Stuart hosts tens of thousands of participants, spectators, and officials who annually descend on the 380-acre complex for baseball and softball, soccer, lacrosse, ultimate frisbee, Gaelic football, Camogie, hurling, and more.
According to Cort Carlson, executive director of the Aurora Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, travel and tourism to the Aurora area has grown into a $274 million visitor economy “built greatly through sports travel” and Stuart continues “to be the centerpiece of the region.”
FVPD officials note that because artificial turf provides assurance that games will be played, local tournament directors are primed to entice more regional and out-of-state teams to Stuart, which will exponentially increase usage of area restaurants, hotels, and other local attractions.
Says Carlson: “The continued improvements to Stuart Sports Complex allows our region to remain competitive as we build up the premier youth sports destination in the Midwest.”
