SNOW HILL – Concerns regarding lighting at Newtown Park in Pocomoke have been addressed, according to one county official.
Worcester County Commissioner Josh Nordstrom said this week that the potential safety issue regarding the wiring of field lights at Newtown Park had been corrected. He plans to ask his fellow commissioners to approve reconnecting the lights in the coming weeks.
“When we’re ready to play baseball again we’ll have lights,” Nordstrom said.
In January, Commissioner Chip Bertino advised county staff of a complaint he’d received regarding the wiring for the field lights at Newtown Park. Though the lights were installed last year after the Pocomoke Little League received funding from the state, Bertino said he’d just been contacted by someone who said the wiring was not buried deep enough in the ground. County officials determined there was an issue with the depth of the wiring and when the issue had not been corrected by March, the commissioners voted to disconnect the lights to ensure public safety.
“I don’t think any of us really want to do this, however we’re in the middle of a situation that’s out of our control so we need to do something to bring it back in,” Commissioner Joe Mitrecic said at the time.
In the weeks since, Nordstrom said various parties got together to address the problem. He said the contractor who initially performed the work returned and corrected the issue at no cost.
“The work was completed last week,” Nordstrom said. “The cables were reburied. Now there’s just some minor landscaping work that needs to be done but it’ll be completed well before the first pitch.”
He said the work took two weeks and had gone smoothly thanks to the cooperation of the various parties involved, included the Pocomoke Little League and the City of Pocomoke as well as the contractor.
“It’s great when you can get everybody together to get an understanding of the problem and figure out a plan to address it,” Nordstrom said.
The Pocomoke Little League season was set to begin April 18 but has been delayed as a result of COVID-19. Nordstrom said that whenever the organization was able to begin playing games, the lights would be ready to use.
“No one really knows at this time when they’ll be able to play again but I’m looking forward to that day,” he said.
