The Henderson County Fiscal Court has agreed to reimburse the city of Henderson for the installation of lights at the new city athletic complex.
The low bid that came to the city for the lighting was from Deig Bros. in Evansville for $1.053 million, according to documents. The lights will cover four baseball/softball fields and one multipurpose field, said city Project Manager Dylan Ward.
After unanimous approval, Judge-Executive Brad Schneider said he was happy to help the city with the project, “but we do want something in return.”
Ward said Henderson County government “will definitely be recognized” at the complex for the contribution.
City officials came to a previous Fiscal Court meeting to ask for assistance to pay for the lighting that will be erected at the new athletic complex on Airline Road.
The initial ask–$1.25 million—came from the city came at a September Fiscal Court meeting.
Ward explained then that the base bid for the project was $10.5 million, but with additional items left out of the base bid, such as lighting, a press box, a playground and additional parking, the cost of the project would be $18.5 million. Ward said city bonding covered $15.5 million. Naming rights and grants accounted for more, but would leave about $1.25 uncovered, he said then.
Magistrates and Schneider expressed support for funding the lighting in particular and the athletic complex in general and said then they would agree to the funding when the city returned with their bids.