Evansville’s Dugout Controversy

The Evansville Information Facebook page has been on fire for the past month with talk about the dugouts at the lower park. Most people seem to agree that the recently installed temporary dugouts don’t look great (particularly after Tuesday’s storm), but what’s been lost in the name-calling is just what entities and rules are at play. So, I’m hoping to clear that part up here.

The park is in the Register of Historic Places, which means that any construction is going to trigger a state-level review by a preservation officer. That happened here, and because the diamond didn’t historically have dugouts, the preservation officer was destined to find that the new construction would have an adverse effect on the park’s historical character. Indeed, the memo from the Wisconsin Historical Society says as much: “On its face, the installation of large new dugouts, where none had been located historically is an adverse effect to the National Register-listed park.”

Because we know the Wisconsin Historical Society’s view, I think a key question is: so what? Does the city have the power to disregard the preservation officer and build permanent dugouts anyway? Again, the Wisconsin Historical Society’s memo gives us the answer: “I believe that the local unit of government must determine the best course of action for its citizens.” My review of the applicable statutes and rules, which reveals no authority for the state to shut down the project, leads me to the same conclusion.

Having determined that this is an issue for the city government to decide, that leaves the question of what should be done. One camp clearly believes that permanent brick dugouts would look better, won’t cost the taxpayers much, if anything, and would question why the issue needs to go any further than that. Mayor Decker’s column from the Review last year provides a good counterbalance to this view by highlighting some additional considerations. I urge you to read the whole thing, but, in short, she points out that Evansville residents have consistently identified Evansville’s historic character as one of our most important resources, a decision to go against the Wisconsin Historical Society could damage a relationship that has proven fruitful in the past, and similar improvements could negatively affect the city’s ability to receive state funds.

Wherever you come down on this issue–or any of the others that flare up in town–I would remind people that it’s easy (and fun!) to sit on the sidelines and complain about the decisions made by our mayor, our city council, our school board, our youth coaches, and the list goes on and on. Nobody’s getting rich from serving in these roles and doing so is sometimes a pain in the, let’s go with butt, but one of the great things about living in a small town is that there are plenty of opportunities for one person to play a big role in what happens here, so if you’re passionate about something–including what happens at the park–I’m guessing that there’s a spot for you to make a difference.