Smithville Little League Oversees Major Upgrades to City Baseball Complex

By Kristen Meriwether, Publisher

After a devastating fire gutted the old concession stand last year, Smithville Little League is rebuilding bigger and better, overseeing major upgrades at the city’s baseball and softball complex thanks to a collaborative effort involving taxpayer dollars, generous donations and countless volunteer hours.

The city of Smithville owns the park and the fields and takes care of basic maintenance like mowing, removing trash and cleaning the restrooms. But Smithville Little League, a 501(c)(3), uses its funds to purchase dirt and conditioner for the fields, wind screens for the dugouts, and its volunteers pour hundreds of hours into making the fields playable for the city’s youth.

The league is also managing the construction of a new concession stand and restrooms for the fields. Last year a fire rendered the long-standing concession stand unusable, so the city of Smithville allocated $50,000 in the current fiscal year’s budget to help rebuild it, along with two ADA-compliant restrooms.

“This is going to be a major upgrade,” league president Kaila Smith said in an interview Wednesday. “Thankfully, we collected enough money to get a nice new big concession stand, and two new bathrooms. We’re going to have air conditioning in there. It’s going to be amazing. So we’re very excited.”

The league secured a $50,000 donation from [an anonymous donor], $21,000 from the Lions Club and a $5,000 grant from Born Again Emporium to pair with its own donations as well as the city’s to get the project off the ground, according to Smith. She also noted Connor Dumbeck offered his general contracting services pro bono, Wilson Heating and Air donated an air conditioning unit at no cost, and Parobek Plumbing and Air Conditioning is donating its plumbing work for the new building.

It’s the second improvement project the league has undertaken this year. During the spring season, it upgraded the batting cages, added a roof, LED lighting and extended the platform so two players could hit at a time.

That project also relied on volunteers to pour the concrete and install the equipment, which was funded by community donations to the Smithville Little League.

These enhancements aren't just about better facilities—they're fueling the league's growth. In a presentation to the Smithville City Council on Monday, Smith said it had more than 250 players sign up to play in the spring, with more than 100 coaches and volunteers for 19 teams from T-ball to junior division.

“I feel like it’s a testament to the time and energy and effort that we’ve put into it to create a good place for our kids to play,” Smith said.

Part of that growth came from letting kids from Bastrop who couldn’t find a team join Smithville’s league.

“Bastrop Little League wasn’t able to create some teams in divisions, so we accepted those players, and put them on our teams, let them play ball,” Smith said in the interview. “That’s the whole point, that every kid gets a chance to play.”

Smithville Little League also expanded its schedule to include Giddings, Flatonia, La Grange and Lockhart, in addition to Bastrop and Elgin, which are in its district. The move allows the league to have a more competitive schedule and gives players the opportunity to compete against kids they will likely face in junior high or high school.

Smith said the kids have enjoyed traveling to new cities for games, and it also brings people in from other communities to visit Smithville. She sees it as an opportunity to help promote the city she grew up in and loves.

“We want Smithville to be a place where people want to come and be here. Come to our town, come stay the weekend,” Smith said. “We want our kids to have a nice place to play ball, but also to see our city thrive as well.”

The new concession stand is expected to be completed this fall, and Smithville Little League is hoping the work it puts in will grant it an extension and revision of its facilities use agreement.

In the presentation at Monday’s council meeting, Smithville Little League vice president Garrett Gutierrez mentioned it would like to be able to host tournaments to bring in more teams to the city, potentially generating revenue to fund further improvements.

“If granted, this extension and new use agreement would potentially alleviate some headaches from the city and give the little league an opportunity to make a little money that will go back into the facilities for improvements and upgrades,” Gutierrez said at Monday’s meeting.

Smith said it hasn’t had discussions with the city yet, but both Mayor Sharon Foerster and City Manager Robert Tamble offered profuse praise at Monday’s meeting.

“I would echo the importance of the partnership. The Smithville Little League has donated money and sweat equity to get it done,” Tamble said. “Thank you for what you do.” 

With these upgrades, the league is not just maintaining fields, it's building a brighter future for Smithville's young athletes and the community at large.

The Smithville Little League Fall Fundraiser is right around the corner! Tickets will go on sale Aug. 25 and the event is Sept. 29 from 5:30-7:30pm. 

You can also donate directly on their website here.