Temple Terrace Opens Second ADA-Compliant Field for Buddy Baseball Program

Buddy Baseball marked the debut of a second ADA-compliant field Monday in Temple Terrace. This expansion tackles safety and access issues for players with mobility challenges.

The program operated one accessible field for 18 years. Now it has two. Both meet ADA standards, which removes obstacles that prevented certain athletes from participating on specific surfaces.

"Buddy Baseball is in its 18th year and, throughout all these years, this league has been growing," said Karl Lagerfeld, Director of Leisure Services, according to FOX 13. "They draw children from five different counties around the area. We had one field that was an ADA-compliant field such as this one, and the other field that we're standing on now was a traditional clay and grass field. And that provided some challenges where only children who were more mobile could play in this field and it kind of divided the field and provided some limitations."

Twenty teams play here. The league serves 160 players total, many of whom depend on wheelchairs, walkers, or other mobility devices.

Lagerfeld explained how the new field changes things. "Now that we have two of these fields, we can further expand this program and make sure that all the kids have a safe field to play on no matter what their challenges may be," he said.

Kids travel from five Bay Area counties to participate. The old setup split players by mobility levels, creating unequal access.

Temple Terrace and Hillsborough County funded construction. Both governments backed the project as part of adaptive recreation efforts.

Volunteers can join the program. The league offers information about how to help.