City of Burnet evaluating YMCA youth fields

Photo by Martelle Luedecke/Luedecke Photography

City of Burnet crew members have sealed off the four fields at the YMCA of the Highland Lakes following the Fourth of July weekend floods.

Workers are still assessing the damages to the area and the four fields, but Public Works Manager Thad Mercer said July 11 city officials want to get them ready for play as quickly as they can.

“We’ve been so busy assessing the damage,” he said. “The goal is to rebuild and get them up and working as soon as possible.”

Workers had moved large debris to the sides of the parking lot July 9 to make it easier for the piles to be picked up and moved. That also allowed YMCA members to park. But road barricades sealed off the drive to the two back fields, though Mercer indicated the parking lot itself didn’t have much damage.

The majority of the damage, he said, is to the fields.

“All four fields are damaged badly,” the director said. “The fences are all washed out, the dugouts are demolished. All the dirt, bases and pitching mounds are gone. All are pretty much total rebuilds. At field number two, the dugouts are completely demolished; water tore them down. (The dugouts) are intact at the other two fields – we’ll have to repaint them. At field number one, the dugouts are OK. They need to be cleaned and repainted. The racks are still intact.”

All four fields had natural grass in the outfield.

“It seems to be fine,” Mercer said. “I haven’t got that far into it. We’re still investigating that part. The fences are a total rebuild at all four. There’s a torn batter’s cage out there – that’s a total rebuild on that, too. It’s a total loss.”

One of the four scoreboards “is a complete loss that we know about right now,” he said.

“Right now the electrical is shut off,” he said. “We’re still in the middle of investigating.”

Mercer didn’t begin to speculate on how many games or how many weekends during a calendar year those fields are played. Faith Academy of Marble Falls has used the back baseball field as its home field for at least the last four years.

“During baseball season, they’re used every weekend,” the director said. “(Burnet Youth Softball and Baseball Association) call that home. Softball uses them also as much. There are some adult leagues.”

Estimated cost of damages or to get the facility ready to play?

“That’s going to take us awhile to figure out,” Mercer said.

The director, on behalf of city workers and administrators, did have one request of residents.

“The City is asking for people not to be going back there,” he said. “We don’t want to get anybody hurt. Please keep out and let us do our job. We don’t want anybody to get hurt.”

Photo by Martelle Luedecke/Luedecke Photography