La Crosse, Wis. – Barb and Dave Skogen, founders of Festival Foods, have agreed to donate $300,000 in support of facility improvements at Copeland Park. The donation, made to University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Athletics and the La Crosse Loggers, will be used to install an artificial turf playing surface on the infield, in foul territory, and on the warning track at Copeland Park. The new playing surface is the first, and most significant, of several facility improvements at Copeland Park planned by the Loggers and UW-La Crosse, pending final approval of their respective use agreements with the City of La Crosse.
“Barb and I are approached with a variety of giving opportunities, but this project stood out to us on a number of levels,” said Dave Skogen. “First and foremost, it was a chance to benefit the entire baseball community in La Crosse. From youth players to college players, all will enjoy the new artificial surface. We are excited to make a gift with such far-reaching impact.”
Copeland Park hosts approximately 200 events each year, including more than 125 games not involving the Loggers or UW-La Crosse. Other major users include La Crosse Central High School, Western Technical College, American Legion baseball, and the Stars of Tomorrow. Other local high schools and youth leagues also make significant use of the facility. All will benefit from the artificial playing surface, which drains quickly, minimizing the risk of canceled games due to inclement weather and reducing the length of rain delays. Another benefit of the turf will be significantly reduced maintenance costs; currently, the Loggers re-sod the infield at Copeland Park at least once, and often multiple times, each year.
“Having an artificial turf infield surface at Copeland Park will make playing our spring schedule imminently easier,” said Joe Beran, Director of Athletics at La Crosse Central High School. “As one of the field’s first users every year, we struggle with the grass, which is often in bad shape so soon after the snow and ice of winter. The new surface will be safer and will allow for more consistent use in the early spring. Our program is very grateful to Dave and Barb for their generosity.”
“Another attractive element of the project was the opportunity to support community collaboration,” Skogen said. “The partnership that is growing between UW-La Crosse, the Loggers, the many Copeland Park users, and the City of La Crosse is a wonderful example of how local organizations, schools, and government can come together to support the community as a whole. We want to encourage that kind of teamwork.”
In May 2012, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Athletics and the La Crosse Loggers announced a new partnership. The Loggers agreed to provide an annual donation to support UW-La Crosse Baseball, which had university funding for its head coaching position terminated in 2009. In exchange, UW-La Crosse agreed to assist the Loggers in raising funds for needed improvements at Copeland Park, a City of La Crosse-owned facility that the Loggers have called home for the club’s first 11 years.
“We would like to thank Barb and Dave for their tremendous generosity and support of baseball in La Crosse,” said Loggers’ owner Dan Kapanke. “I have known Barb and Dave for many years, yet their enthusiasm for this community and their willingness to give back never ceases to amaze me. Hundreds of La Crosse baseball players, from the smallest kids to the biggest college stars, will benefit from their donation, now and in the future.”
“Time and again, Barb and Dave have proven themselves to be incredible friends to our athletic program and our nearly 600 student-athletes,” echoed Josh Whitman, UW-La Crosse Director of Athletics. “Without their leadership and vision, the Veterans Memorial Field Sports Complex – the finest at our level anywhere in the country – never happens. They were instrumental in the development of our new student-athlete weight room. They are active members of our prestigious Diamond Eagles Club. Festival Foods is one of our program’s lead corporate sponsors. And now they have made a gift that solidifies the long-term sustainability of our baseball program. All of us involved in UW-L Athletics owe them a tremendous debt of gratitude.”
The artificial turf playing surface is the first of several facility improvements envisioned by the Loggers and the Eagles. Anticipated projects include installation of a video board, renovation of dugouts, and construction of batting cages. All facility improvements will be funded entirely with private resources; no taxpayer dollars will be used. Fundraising for these additional projects is ongoing.
“Once these projects are completed, Copeland Park will be one of the finest baseball venues in the upper Midwest,” said Chris Goodell, General Manager of the Loggers. “It will be a facility that our entire community can take pride in. As another notable benefit, having a venue of this caliber will allow La Crosse to host large-scale baseball tournaments, including NCAA events, that will mean significant dollars for the local economy.”
Activation of the partnership between UW-La Crosse and the Loggers remains contingent on each party reaching separate long-term use agreements with the City of La Crosse that would allow both the Loggers and UW-La Crosse Baseball to make Copeland Park their home venue for years to come. It was recently announced that the Loggers have reached an agreement in principle on a long-term extension to their original lease with the City. Remaining details are being resolved and the agreement should soon go before the Common Council for final approval. UW-La Crosse has also engaged the City in negotiations, with approval of their agreement anticipated after the City concludes talks with the Loggers. Once both agreements are finalized, installation of the artificial turf surface can begin, hopefully no later than this fall.
