Support the Kenston Community Stadium

Urge Bainbridge Trustees to Financially Support the Kenston Community Stadium

March, 2009

The Bainbridge Trustees are currently devising a plan to spend the Township's $6.5 million investment estate tax fund (also known as the Frohring estate tax fund) as required by the Geauga County Auditor’s office.

The Kenston Community Stadium Committee would like to show the Bainbridge Trustees how many community members are in favor of devoting a part of these funds to the Kenston Community Stadium.

Background:
The Kenston Community Stadium Project Committee is a group of Kenston parents who came together to raise funds for installing an artificial turf on the Kenston High School football field.

The Kenston Community Stadium would increase usage of the field from 40 high school events to over 600 school and community events. Over $400,000 has been raised privately to support the stadium. Bainbridge Township has a unique opportunity to contribute to a project which will be a lasting legacy for our community without using levied tax dollars.

Bainbridge Trustees are instructed to use the following criteria for determining how to allocate these funds:

A) Must be a benefit to the public health, safety and welfare of residents, and

B) Must be a benefit to a majority of Bainbridge residents.

The Kenston Community Stadium project fully meets these criteria. While there are many other worthy township projects that the Trustees are considering, including roads, fire and police projects, a portion of these funds should be devoted to the youth of our community.

This initiative will alleviate the overuse of our athletic fields, which results in poor and unsafe conditions for our young athletes. It will also alleviate the need to convert current park land into more athletic fields, which is now under consideration by the Trustees.

The Committee would like to Trustees to commit $200,000 toward this project. $200,000 represents less than 3% of this investment fund and is a valid commitment to youth recreation, which is regularly a part of the Township budget.

Thank you for your participation in this community initiative.

The Kenston Community Stadium Committee: Scott Shell, Greg Bumbu, Dan Lindner, Bob Ford, Tony Blatnik, Greg Randall, John Goodman, Scott Henry, Jim Gray, and Zinn Gorby.