Community Field

Community Field was built in 1947 upon the establishment of the Burlington Indians, minor league baseball affiliate of the Cleveland Indians. During that time, Community Field housed the affiliates of five different minor league baseball clubs and was fortunate enough to see the likes of Billy Williams and Vida Blue perform before tragedy struck. On June 9, 1971, the grandstand seating burned down to the ground. However, during the rebuild, no games were missed as there were temporary bleacher seats erected in place of the grandstand. By the start of the 1973 season, the grandstand was finished by an all-volunteer crew, displaying impressive community support. ==Renovations==

In 1999, a series of projects were started to improve Community Field and make it more fan-friendly. Such projects included: • New bleacher seating and box seating • Upgraded sound system • Elevation of the Budweiser Party deck to provide a better view of the game. • Addition to the maintenance shed to provide extra storage. • Upgraded scoreboard with a message center in right-center field. The stadium was once again renovated for the 2005 season, but this renovation was a much more extensive project than the renovations in 1999, including: In October 2012, more improvements were made, when the Burlington Bees groundskeeping crew re-sodded the entire playing surface with assistance from the Iowa Cubs Sports Turf Management staff. A few months later, in late March 2013, Community Field installed new field lights, 2 of them being infield lights that were moved back, thus creating space for possible future expansion of the grandstands. Community Field and the Burlington Bees rely heavily on community support from Burlington and the surrounding area communities. All of their renovations have been backed and supported by the community not only financially, but emotionally, as well. ==Friends of Community Field==

The Friends of Community Field is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established in 1998 to help the Bees raise money for capital improvement projects involving Community Field. The Friends is run by a volunteer Board of Directors that helps to organize various fundraisers and the volunteer work force that helps maintain the stadium. Since 1998, money that has been raised has helped with new stadium lights, new playground flooring and canopy, new bleachers, box seats, the sound system, brat garden improvements and most recently, the fund raising for the "Extreme Makeover" of Community Field that was completed in 2005. In addition to the funds raised to finish the last renovation, the Friends of Community Field aims to raise money to start an endowment for future work to be done at the ballpark, without having to start another major fundraising initiative. All contributions to the Friends of Community Field are tax deductible. ==References==