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Public commenter urges district to return field-rental fees to baseball program
Summary
A public commenter asked the Canal Winchester Schools Board of Education to change the district’s field-rental practice so fees collected for use of high school and middle school baseball fields are returned to the baseball program rather than placed in the district general fund.
Rob Stedman, a community member, told the Canal Winchester Schools Board of Education during public comment that the district’s current practice of placing tournament rental proceeds into the district general fund leaves the baseball program and its families covering routine operating costs.
Stedman said the athletic department provides a stipend “of roughly $1,000 to $1,500” for the program, but the sport requires recurring materials — baseballs, mound clay, infield mix, field conditioner, diamond dry, grass seed and fertilizer — that exceed that support. He gave specific examples: “One dozen baseballs costs about $98. Each game uses anywhere between 5 and 10 baseballs,” and said his count for the 2024–25 season showed “16 dozen baseballs used for high school, 5 dozen balls used for JV.”
Stedman described a recent Central Ohio summer tournament that used the varsity field for two full days and the middle school field for a full day, producing 20 games and generating $3,000 in rental revenue. He said program volunteers prepared and maintained the fields for the event but “were advised the entirety of the funds would have to be given to the school district and placed in the school's general fund,” leaving the baseball program without access to those proceeds. Stedman asked the board to “reevaluate” the field-rental process so fees from baseball and softball rentals can be directed back to the respective programs to defray costs now falling on families.
A board member asked a clarifying question about where fees currently go. Stedman replied that the funds “go neither to the baseball boosters nor the athletic department. We were advised they go into the school's” general fund. Board members asked Stedman to email his comments to the district for follow-up.
No formal action or vote on a policy change occurred during the meeting. The district did not state a timeline for any review or revision of rental-fee procedures during the discussion.
