COLD SPRING — Cold Spring City Council approved the creation of a baseball commission Wednesday to review the city’s rules for use of the baseball park, recommend possible revisions, reach a lease deal with the primary user and set up a system for renting the park to others.

The commission is meant to be temporary, City Administrator Paul Hetland said. Its goal is to make public use of the park easier. Once those tasks are completed, the commission will be scaled back and will meet as needed in the future, Hetland said.

The topic came up after a St. Cloud State University representative asked the council during its Aug. 9 meeting to use the field for four dates in September.

This issue went before the council because there was no other mechanism set up to field such requests.

“Everybody realized the need to make this a more administrative and less political process,” Hetland said.

Baseball Inc., which consists of the Cold Spring Rockies, the Cold Spring Springers, Rocori High School and the VFW/American Legion baseball teams, hold an annual city permit to use the field, but there is no formal lease agreement.

The commission will include two members of the City Council — Mayor Doug Schmitz and Dave Stadther — one member at large appointed by the council, and one member each from the Silver Springers, the Rockies, the Springers, Rocori High School Baseball, the American Legion/VFW and the Park Board.

Hetland, Public Works Director Paul Hoeschen and Park Superintendent Jason Zimmerman will be on the commission as nonvoting staff members.

“We have an open mind about how to create a better system,” he said, with what makes sense for the parks and how to help the teams stay healthy and growing. City leaders want to balance that with public access.

Renting the baseball field is more complex than renting space in a city park, he said, and they’re aware of that, as evidenced by the conflict that arose over St. Cloud State’s request, which was for the period in which the field would normally be put to rest for the season and reseeded in preparation for next year. The schedule could not accommodate all of St. Cloud State’s requested dates.

The commission will decide what that administrative process for using the field will be, who will be in charge of that and how that process is paid for.

Source:  St. Cloud Times:  http://www.sctimes.com/article/20111002/NEWS01/110020058/Cold-Spring-council-OKs-baseball-commission