The lights are on at the ballpark, but the controversy lives on

The lights are on at the ballpark. Tuesday night was the official lighting ceremony. Construction of the ballpark moves forward everyday and is on schedule for the April 28th opener.

But the controversy surrounding it remains the same. Those who are against the decision to build this stadium without citizen input aren’t going stand by quietly. And this time it’s Councilwoman Lily Limon who’s lighting the fireworks.

“It’s like this, there were two sides to the ballpark,” said local government watchdog Lisa Turner. “One side lost, one side won. We continue to fight as if we can put city hall back where it was.”

In what appeared to be a routine council vote on five final touches to the ballpark — about $350,000 of the already allocated budget for:
– scoreboard signage
– food and beverage carts
– wood and glass display cabinets for retails stores
– about 357 trash receptacles
– and display racks for retail shops

Councilwoman Lily Limon took offense to Councilwoman Cortney Niland, when Niland quickly approved the the items without allowing Limon to get an explanation on what the items were and how much they would cost.

“The issue here is courtesy and respect,” Limon said. “Yesterday when we had agenda review, I made it really clear that today that I wanted this moved to the regular agenda, which it was done. And since I had moved it, I thought that out of courtesy, I would have the opportunity to listen to the presentation and make a vote. Unfortunately that was not reciprocated, and that’s how we got into this situation.”

Limon’s request added an additional 15 minutes to City Council Tuesday and did not go over well with some people.

“This seems to be regular stuff we have to do to make sure the ballpark is up and running,” Turner said.

A period of chaos ensued, but in the end, Limon got a chance to rehear the items.

She didn’t ask questions and abstained from voting. It passed 5 to 1.

“We lost the battle,” Turner said. “Stadiums built. How many times do we have to beat this dead horse until we realize it’s dead?”

Project Engineer Alan Shubert said they did a lighting study to make the lights weren’t obtrusive to nearby residents. But he said, there is nothing unobtrusive about a ballpark.