MANCHESTER, N.H. – A request to delay the transition of a baseball field to a soccer field at Sheehan-Basquil Park during the new business portion of the Tuesday, Oct. 21 Board of Mayor and Aldermen meeting was defeated following a discussion on the state of youth sports in the inner city.
The proposal was made by Alderman At-Large Dan O’Neil, who told the board that a recent rejuvenation in local Little League Baseball leadership could increase usage of the field, which has been dormant for much of the past decade. O’Neil added that distance to other Little League and Cal Ripken League fields made participation in baseball difficult for elementary and middle-school aged children living near Sheehan-Basquil Park.
O’Neil and Manchester Department of Public Works Director Tim Clougherty both mentioned a “spirited discussion” they held over the subject prior to the meeting regarding this issue. While O’Neil asked for a delay on the transformation of the field given that no construction would be done until spring, Clougherty mentioned the lack of usage over the past decade as well as research done over youth sport needs in the city.
Additionally, it was noted that if there was a delay in the request for proposals to transform the park this winter, it could delay the expected usage by soccer organizations in the Fall of 2026.
Department of Public Works Parks and Recreation Division Director Mark Gomez said that the primary Little League and Cal Ripken fields can be found at Precourt Park just off South Willow Street, Livingston Park just north of Webster Street and Stevens Park near the corner of Hanover Street and Mammoth Road while the primary youth soccer fields in the city are located at Livingston Park, Precourt Park, the Padden Field Complex near Stevens Pond and facilities at Rock Rimmon Park. In an analysis of field usage requests outside of those fields, Gomez said that baseball organizations had 180 hours of requests for field usage and soccer organizations had 1,586 hours of requests for field usage.
Gomez added that the city’s current slate of public park soccer fields is struggling to meet demand and that unused sport fields are often used for drug use or homeless encampments.
O’Neil indicated that he would support the transformation if the field could be used for organizations that help children living near the field or other children that may not be able to afford leagues with high fees. Gomez said the city currently works with 20 separate youth soccer organizations and 16 of those organizations have low fees, scholarships for players, or otherwise low barriers to entry. Gomez added that those 16 organizations get preference when it comes to reserving fields.
Ward 10 Alderman Bill Barry hopes that the Parks and Recreation Department could create a league in the Sheehan-Basquil Park to directly facilitate participation by children living nearby and hoped a pool could be placed in the park to replace the one that was once there.
Ward 1 Alderman Chris Morgan supported the concept of the field, noting that the hundreds of children living nearby in the Beech Street Football Club already use the mini-pitch in the park and there would likely be more children joining the club if a soccer field was added to the park.
There was not an official vote on the request, with Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais asking for an informal show of hands among the Aldermen, with that show of hands indicating that the board did not support a pause on the field transformation.