SHU renovations
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Essex County to renovate Mike Sheppard, Sr. Field & four tennis courts in Ivy Hill Park
For immediate release – July 13, 2015
Newark, N.J. - Seton Hall’s softball and tennis programs will be receiving facility upgrades as Essex County will renovate both Mike Sheppard Sr. Field and the four tennis courts that are contained within the county’s Ivy Hill Park, Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr. announced Monday. Seton Hall University is partnering with Essex County to modernize the softball facility. Completion of both projects is expected to be in September.
“Providing first-class recreation facilities and making sure our parks and open spaces continue to meet the needs of the community have been initiatives of my administration since day one. The work we are doing at the tennis courts and softball/little league field are the latest phases to revitalize Ivy Hill Park,” DiVincenzo said. “Essex County and Seton Hall University have enjoyed a long relationship, especially in this park. While our children and residents will enjoy the new facilities, Seton Hall’s athletic teams will benefit from the improved playing conditions. We are pleased to be partnering with the University on this latest phase,” he added.
“Providing a first-class experience to our student-athletes is a top priority, and our partnership with Essex County will help deliver a modern softball facility and tennis courts that will help us compete for BIG EAST championships while also giving the Essex County community a terrific place to play,” Seton Hall University Vice President and Director of Athletics Patrick Lyons said. “The improvements to Mike Sheppard, Sr. Field and the tennis courts will be the latest facility project our department has taken on over the last few years as we continue to show our recruits, fans, students and alumni that Seton Hall University is the perfect place to get a world-class education and compete at the highest level of athletics.”
Mike Sheppard, Sr. Field, owned and operated by Essex County, has been the home for Pirates softball since 2005. The field is named for the legendary Pirates baseball head coach who led Seton Hall to 12 NCAA Tournament appearances and back-to-back College World Series berths in 1974-75. The improvements to the facility include: brand new synthetic turf both on the infield and the outfield; raised bleachers that will increase the capacity to 700 and will provide for better viewing angles; a press box that will accommodate game operations as well as television and radio productions; batting cages within the bullpens for both home and away teams; bench seating and cubbies within each dugout.
The four tennis courts are being completely rebuilt with a new playing surface, surface coating, fencing, nets and trash receptacles. The courts will also include new lights.
Keeping in line with its mission of providing a top notch experience for its student-athletes, Seton Hall Athletics continues to transform facilities, giving the Pirates some of the best spaces, not only in the BIG EAST, but the entire nation. Within just the last two years under Lyons, the athletics department has opened the Charles W. Doehler Academic Center, the Center for Sports Medicine, the new recreation & fitness center, the new Varsity Weight Room, the Varsity Film Room and the new Varsity Locker Rooms. In addition, a new LED scoreboard was added to Owen T. Carroll Field.
For immediate release – July 13, 2015
Newark, N.J. - Seton Hall’s softball and tennis programs will be receiving facility upgrades as Essex County will renovate both Mike Sheppard Sr. Field and the four tennis courts that are contained within the county’s Ivy Hill Park, Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr. announced Monday. Seton Hall University is partnering with Essex County to modernize the softball facility. Completion of both projects is expected to be in September.
“Providing first-class recreation facilities and making sure our parks and open spaces continue to meet the needs of the community have been initiatives of my administration since day one. The work we are doing at the tennis courts and softball/little league field are the latest phases to revitalize Ivy Hill Park,” DiVincenzo said. “Essex County and Seton Hall University have enjoyed a long relationship, especially in this park. While our children and residents will enjoy the new facilities, Seton Hall’s athletic teams will benefit from the improved playing conditions. We are pleased to be partnering with the University on this latest phase,” he added.
“Providing a first-class experience to our student-athletes is a top priority, and our partnership with Essex County will help deliver a modern softball facility and tennis courts that will help us compete for BIG EAST championships while also giving the Essex County community a terrific place to play,” Seton Hall University Vice President and Director of Athletics Patrick Lyons said. “The improvements to Mike Sheppard, Sr. Field and the tennis courts will be the latest facility project our department has taken on over the last few years as we continue to show our recruits, fans, students and alumni that Seton Hall University is the perfect place to get a world-class education and compete at the highest level of athletics.”
Mike Sheppard, Sr. Field, owned and operated by Essex County, has been the home for Pirates softball since 2005. The field is named for the legendary Pirates baseball head coach who led Seton Hall to 12 NCAA Tournament appearances and back-to-back College World Series berths in 1974-75. The improvements to the facility include: brand new synthetic turf both on the infield and the outfield; raised bleachers that will increase the capacity to 700 and will provide for better viewing angles; a press box that will accommodate game operations as well as television and radio productions; batting cages within the bullpens for both home and away teams; bench seating and cubbies within each dugout.
The four tennis courts are being completely rebuilt with a new playing surface, surface coating, fencing, nets and trash receptacles. The courts will also include new lights.
Keeping in line with its mission of providing a top notch experience for its student-athletes, Seton Hall Athletics continues to transform facilities, giving the Pirates some of the best spaces, not only in the BIG EAST, but the entire nation. Within just the last two years under Lyons, the athletics department has opened the Charles W. Doehler Academic Center, the Center for Sports Medicine, the new recreation & fitness center, the new Varsity Weight Room, the Varsity Film Room and the new Varsity Locker Rooms. In addition, a new LED scoreboard was added to Owen T. Carroll Field.
Lots of hard work by Pat Lyons and a few $$$$$$$$$$ donations to the Hall helped.
I didn't see this on the artist's rendition of the tennis courts but is there going to be seating for fans to watch the tennis matches?
I really wish Seton Hall would enter some type of agreement with the county to develop a sports complex in Ivy Hill Park that could help serve as the home courts/fields for our Pirates but that could also be used for county and city championships. Make it first class and state of the art all the way around.
Very nice. The softball field will be more playable when there's bad weather and immediately thereafter. They will also more than double the seating capacity to 700 from the current 300. And it looks like it will create an all-around better look and atmosphere.
These two factors will hopefully enable them to play more home games, and to attract recruits.
Will SHU now be able to try to host the Big East Championship? The attendance for the championship game in May vs. St. John's was 416. If that game is played at SHU next season, it will be SRO.
I do believe that there is another softball field in the park that can be used for warmups, correct?
These two factors will hopefully enable them to play more home games, and to attract recruits.
Will SHU now be able to try to host the Big East Championship? The attendance for the championship game in May vs. St. John's was 416. If that game is played at SHU next season, it will be SRO.
I do believe that there is another softball field in the park that can be used for warmups, correct?
The one major issue that I see is that there are still no bathroom facilities in any of the fields. They really need to address that. You can't have hundreds of spectators and no bathrooms.
And it's too bad the stands are not covered. I wish they would do that for the stands on the soccer field.
And it's too bad the stands are not covered. I wish they would do that for the stands on the soccer field.
Awesome idea! We all know that's a pipedream... Too many players involved in that... Catholic Church, Politicians (local, county, state), etc.
But it would be great.
shuathelete, i was just thinking the same thing, the layout of those courts makes zero sense. That's actually really funny, I would never play on those courts, and this is supposed to be part of a first class renovation?
Whenever you're involved in a joint project with a public entity the amount of control you have is limited and can handicap you in significant ways . Seton Hall is contributing financially to this project but is not in charge and while it may not be everything we wanted it will be better then what we have now.
Seton Hall Athletics @SHUAthletics 17h17 hours agoEssex Co. to renovate Mike Sheppard, Sr. Field & 4 tennis courts in Ivy Hill Park. READ: http://www.shupirates.com/genrel/071315aac.html…
They must be putting a fence in between the two, but it looks like the entrance would be where the dividing fence would be. In all seriousness, I have to assume it is a careless rendering.
I'm no tennis expert, but it's probably more important to use those courts for practice than it is for matches. Also not positive, but I think that area of the park is kind of landlocked.
As far as the comment above about using the park to create a Seton Hall sports complex, I'm not too sure about that. It already contains the usual stuff you find in a park, including a playground and couple of fields (including the SHU softball field) used for little league. Beyond that, maybe the open space should be kept that way. Newark needs all of the open space it can get.
The other point is spot on...they should include permanent rest room facilities as part of the renovations. Not sure that it is..
As far as the comment above about using the park to create a Seton Hall sports complex, I'm not too sure about that. It already contains the usual stuff you find in a park, including a playground and couple of fields (including the SHU softball field) used for little league. Beyond that, maybe the open space should be kept that way. Newark needs all of the open space it can get.
The other point is spot on...they should include permanent rest room facilities as part of the renovations. Not sure that it is..
Clearly the artist does not play tennis...the artist was probably a student that somebody asked for a picture, any picture, of a tennis court...
If you do a Google maps or Apple maps search and zoom in, you will see that the tennis courts are directly behind the baseball bleachers around left center field.
So the courts are, in effect, on campus. The ladies can walk there from the dorms in about five or 10 minutes. That's such a huge bonus to not have to waste time getting in a van to travel simply to practice outdoors. (I assume they will save money by playing some matches at home instead of renting.)
And you can see that the current four courts are also in the same square format with a fence in the middle. (The map apps have old maps also showing the old SHU courts that were replaced by the new parking deck.)
Despite some missing pieces that are desirable, these upgrades are very significant and beneficial to the softball and tennis. I can't wait to see them.
I want to suggest that SHU offer tours of all the new facilities completed over the past two years. I know it's been said that anybody can request a tour. However, I know many people, including myself, who would not ask for a personal tour.
Perhaps in the early fall season before one of the soccer games? The weather should still be warm enough to walk around.
https://www.google.com/maps/place/4...2!3m1!1s0x89c3ac9758cef333:0xc61cc96544a015dd
So the courts are, in effect, on campus. The ladies can walk there from the dorms in about five or 10 minutes. That's such a huge bonus to not have to waste time getting in a van to travel simply to practice outdoors. (I assume they will save money by playing some matches at home instead of renting.)
And you can see that the current four courts are also in the same square format with a fence in the middle. (The map apps have old maps also showing the old SHU courts that were replaced by the new parking deck.)
Despite some missing pieces that are desirable, these upgrades are very significant and beneficial to the softball and tennis. I can't wait to see them.
I want to suggest that SHU offer tours of all the new facilities completed over the past two years. I know it's been said that anybody can request a tour. However, I know many people, including myself, who would not ask for a personal tour.
Perhaps in the early fall season before one of the soccer games? The weather should still be warm enough to walk around.
https://www.google.com/maps/place/4...2!3m1!1s0x89c3ac9758cef333:0xc61cc96544a015dd
If you read the details of the deal with the county, you will see that SHU in entitled to a significant number of hours of field time each year, on a priority basis.
In other words, the Pirates will not have to be waiting in line to use the field. And they will get all the game time and practice time they need.
I don't have the link at the moment.
It's Ivy Hill Park right? You ever hear of trees?
Vegas, my reply is contained in the short video clip.
The school along with Essex county paid for the improvements. SHU deserves a lot of quality time using the facilities.
Here it is: SHU gets 750 hours per year. That's significant. It's divided into units. Each unit is three hours. They get 250 units "on a priority basis, annually."
Interestingly, SHU still has to pay the county $10K each year, down from $20K. As they said in the movie, Casino: "Can you believe this cowboy bullshyt."
The link has all the details.
http://www.ecode360.com/documents/ES1525/public/189781574.pdf
Interestingly, SHU still has to pay the county $10K each year, down from $20K. As they said in the movie, Casino: "Can you believe this cowboy bullshyt."
The link has all the details.
http://www.ecode360.com/documents/ES1525/public/189781574.pdf
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Good info thanks. As the terms of the lease indicate SH is paying $1,500, 000 are you aware of what the total cost is for the renovation and who is responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of both the field and the tennis court .
Based on what I read it, I would assume the $1.5 million is complete cost of the softball field project, as I see no county contribution listed in agreements and that is probably the reason SHU monthly costs are being reduced by $10,000/year. Seems that county is paying for all of the cost of fixing up the tennis courts.
If you read down in the original agreement (pg 12 - Heading of: Care of Licensed Property), looks like Essex County takes care of maintenance of the property, with SHU having the option to make preperations, improvements and maintenance for individual events.
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Not being critical or anything, but why not? If the facilities mean so much to you, then why wouldn't you want to ask for a tour, especially when multiple people from the school are willing to give you a tour? How is that different than being given a personal tour that is offered by SHU?
The last time I was on campus in the spring, somebody was showing me what was going where with the Ivy Hill improvements. It's good to see the plans coming into shape, especially with the softball field. Financially, this is a pretty good deal for the school considering the upgrades that were needed.
6711, I would feel very embarrassed to ask for a personal tour.
I also would not want to impose on somebody and take up 30-plus minutes of their work day to walk around with me.
I think they have a lot show off. A scheduled tour to coincide with another event would be a nice way to show what's being done with the money. And it might inspire some people to give more or to give for the first time.
Pat Lyons told me over a year ago he wants as many alums and fans as possible to take the SHU tour. It's open to anyone and everyone.
Just contact Jay Judge at
jay.judge@shu.edu
Hey, if they did it for softball and tennis they can do it for other sports as well. I can and should be done!
I'm sure they know that and would not invest the money if the outcome would not be first class.
The park is landlocked and so is campus. What's your point? The park is largely unused unless you are looking for a street pharmacy. Building a sports complex (you can still preserve some of the green spaces) would benefit a hell of a lot more people including both Seton Hall and the residents of Newark than it currently does. There are tons of abandoned and gutted out buildings elsewhere in Newark that serve no purpose to anyone. How about bulldozing those and planting some grass? See, instant park!
SHU Softball @SHUSoftball Jul 15Construction is well underway at Mike Sheppard, Sr. Field! We promise, there will be an outfield again.
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