Citywide Baseball Field Lighting & Fencing Upgrades

Lara Field, Diamond 2, Diamond 3, and Lion's Field currently rely on metal halide lighting, a technology that's becoming obsolete and expensive due to the industry shift towards more efficient LED lighting. The outdated system not only struggles to meet the required light levels for recreational play but also poses challenges in maintenance and energy consumption. 

The transition to LED lighting across these fields represents a significant upgrade, promising to enhance light consistency, halve energy use, and drastically reduce maintenance efforts and costs. LED lights offer a longer lifespan-up to five times that of current systems-and come with warranties for repairs, ensuring reliable, vendor-supported maintenance. 

The upgrade will occur in phases, with initial funding Target Completion 2026-27 directed to Phase 1, targeting improvements at Diamond 3 (D3). This phase includes fencing updates and the installation of a new light pole to achieve optimal lighting conditions. Subsequent funding requests will be made to Congressman Kevin Mullin for Phase 2, focusing on Diamond 2 and Lara Field. Lara Field, suitable for players aged 14 and older, will see both lighting enhancements and fencing renovations. Phase 3 will expand the upgrades to Lion's Field, adding new artificial turf to the list of enhancements alongside the lighting improvements. 

On August 20, 2025, staff conducted the bid opening for the City Park Field Light Upgrade project and received one bid.  The bid received was from Silver Fox Electric, Inc. in the amount of $213,582.  Silver Fox Electric, Inc. has completed similar projects for public agencies.   Based on their experience and performance with public agencies, staff determined that Silver Fox Electric, Inc. meets the qualifications to perform the work for the Field Lighting Upgrades as specified in the contract documents.  Staff anticipates that work will commence in mid-fall 2025 and will be completed by the start of the 2026 season.

July

To move this important initiative forward, the FY 2025–26 CIP budget consolidated the prior year’s Phase 1 work with a new Phase 2 effort. This expanded project now included upgrades at Diamond 3, Diamond 2, and Tom Lara Field. The planned improvements will replace outdated metal halide lights with energy-efficient LED systems across the facilities, providing enhanced visibility, reduced maintenance needs, and improved safety for evening practices and games. 

A mandatory pre-bid conference was held on March 11, attended by 13 potential bidders showing significant interest from potential contractors. This conference allowed contractors to gather important information about the project and ask questions, ensuring they are well-prepared for the bidding process.  However, when bidding closed on March 27, 2025, no bids were received.

As part of the approved FY 2024–25 Capital Improvement Program (CIP) budget, the Citywide Baseball Field Upgrades Phase 1 project was initiated. This phase focused on Diamond 3, where the scope included replacing the existing metal halide field lights with modern LED fixtures and installing a new pole to replace one that had failed during a 2023 storm.