WILDWOOD CREST – The Borough of Wildwood Crest will proceed with repairs and upgrades at the Little League field, despite continuing to haggle with its insurance adjuster over the extent of the damage caused by a fall storm.
A resolution passed Feb. 10 authorizes a $60,000 contract with Marc DeBlasio, the borough’s engineer, to begin the architectural, design and construction phases of the project.
“I can’t have a safety hazard, you know, in its current condition,” Mayor Don Cabrera said. “We’re going to declare this as an emergency repair, so that we can get the work done, so that our recreation programs can be held there, but also the kids can play baseball or softball.”
The storm damaged one dugout, part of the snack stand roof, and a wall that connects the snack stand and scorebox, Cabrera said. Concrete and exposed plumbing pose safety risks at the site, he added.
“We’ve had ongoing meetings with our carrier’s insurance adjuster. I can’t say we were agreeing eye-to-eye on the scope of work,” said Cabrera.
The borough plans to demolish and rebuild the other dugout, which survived the storm, so it will match the new one, and will upgrade the bathrooms and make them Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant, at its own cost, according to the mayor.
