Tri-Village Little League To Install Turf Infield

Currently, the infield at Heid Field at Greenlawn Park is made up of natural grass. Tri-Village Little League plans to change that with a turf infield planned to be installed in time for the upcoming fall season. Long Islander News photo/Connor Beach

By Connor Beach
cbeach@longislandergroup.com

Huntington Tri-Village Little League’s plan to install a synthetic infield at a Greenlawn Park baseball field has gotten town approval.

The synthetic turf infield, the first of its kind for the program, will be installed at the Heid Field as part of a donation by Tri-Village Little League, which holds many of its events and games at Greenlawn Park.

Roger Snyder of Huntington, a Tri-Village Little League board member and safety officer, said the plan is to have the turf infield installed in time for the start of the fall season.

The Huntington Town Board approved the donation during its Aug. 15 meeting. Tri-Village officials can now finalize plans and costs of the project.

“We have been working on the project with the town for at least a couple of years,” Snyder said. “We are hoping to start as soon as we can.”

Huntington Councilwoman Tracey Edwards, who sponsored the resolution approving the donation, said it’s “an honor for me to work with the Tri-Village Little League.

“I remember my kids playing on those fields.”

Heid Field supports around 700 Little Leaguers over the course of one year, and the synthetic infield will make field maintenance easier for the Tri-Village volunteers, Snyder said. The outfield will remain natural grass.

Snyder said that another benefit of the turf infield is its resilience; the field can be used almost immediately following heavy rain.

“We hate cancelling games,” Snyder said. “We will be able to get more games in for sure.”

The project is being funded exclusively by Tri-Village using donations that have been set-aside over a number of years, according to Synder.

Edwards said, “It’s a great benefit to the community because a new turf field is being provided for the kids at zero cost to the taxpayer.”

There are plans to install more synthetic infields in the future, Snyder said.