GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Renovations at historic Sullivan Field are rounding third and headed home after city commissioners approved an additional $1.45 million for the project.
WATCH: Grand Rapids approves $1.45M to finish Sullivan Field renovation
Built in 1937, the diamond and its wooden grandstand sat at risk of being lost before the community rallied around it in 2020. The field was renamed Sullivan Field in 1996 to honor Bob Sullivan, owner and manager of the Grand Rapids Sullivans, whose team used the park as its home field.
The recent funding from the city covers phase two of the $4.94 million renovation project that began in 2021. Phase one was to salvage the wooden grandstand. Phase two expands the scope to include new bullpens, a new field, landscaping, brick paving, bathroom renovations, a new pavillion, a maintenance building and a new entryway into the park.
The project will also include a new building housing a museum dedicated to Grand Rapids baseball history.
The city partnered with the nonprofit Fans of Valley Field in 2020 to begin the effort to save the field. The nonprofit has received more than 1,600 donations and raised millions of dollars, most recently securing an additional $950,000 to fund phase two.
Paul Soltysiak, an organizer with Fans of Valley Field, said he's happy to see the fruits of their labor starting to pay off.
"It's really exciting," Soltysiak said.
Soltysiak grew up playing at the field, which gave the effort a personal dimension for him and many of the volunteers involved.
"This was my playground growing up, along with a lot of my neighborhood friends," Soltysiak said.
One of those neighborhood friends was Steve Ogrodzinski. Ogrodzinski said the preservation effort matters beyond nostalgia.
"It was like our neighborhood playground, basically. And when we played here, we always tried hitting home runs over the fence and hitting the houses," Ogrodzinski laughed. "These old stadiums, they're disappearing or have disappeared, and it's great to preserve something like this. It's history."
Soltysiak said the significance of what has been accomplished is still sinking in.
"There are very few wooden grandstand ballparks left in the country, so it's so exciting that we're going to be able to preserve this and properly take care of it," Soltysiak said.
"It's just important to save places like this," Soltysiak said.
Construction at Sullivan Field is expected to wrap up by the end of the year. Organizers are hoping to hold a ribbon cutting on Jackie Robinson Day, April 15, 2027.
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