Lodi Council approves millions for renovations at historic Tony Zupo Field

May 5—The City of Lodi is finally on the home stretch to repairing Zupo Field.

The Lodi City Council on Wednesday night unanimously approved a more than $4 million contract between AM Stephens Construction, Inc. of Lodi to construct a new press box and grandstands at the century-old stadium.

Funds would come from more than $2.1 million set aside in the city's 2022-23 budget, and nearly $2.5 million from the parks capital fund, the latter of which would be reimbursed by a pending insurance settlement.

City manager Steve Schwabauer said staff is anticipating $3 million in reimbursement funds, but negotiations with the city's insurance carrier are still ongoing.

Zupo Field was damaged by a fire in 2019 that originated behind the stadium's entrance sign close to the first base side of the grandstands and office.

The home plate grandstands, the press box and the office were all destroyed.

Schwabauer said the project does not replace everything staff, the council and residents wanted.

While the press box, dugouts, grandstands and entrance will be replaced, the bleachers, which need a lot of repair, will not be.

Crews will also upgrade parts of the facility to be compliant with the Americans With Disabilities Act.

"The bleachers, in fact, ultimately go away, and we are left for now, with the grandstand," Schwabauer said. "However, we do have significant rehabilitation of that facility and the rehabilitation of the assets around it."

Built in 1924, the facility was originally known as Lawrence Park. In 1966, the stadium became the home of the Lodi Crushers, a Single-A California League team affiliated with the Chicago Cubs, according to www.baseball-reference .com.

The team was affiliated with a number of Major League Baseball franchises, including the Oakland Athletics and Los Angeles Dodgers, as well as two Nippon Pro Baseball league clubs from Japan over its 18-year existence in Lodi.

The team took a hiatus in 1985 before moving to Ventura County in 1986. According to Wikipedia, the team moved to San Bernadino in 1987 as the Spirit, and now exists as the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes.

Zupo Field was also home to semi-professional baseball teams for 55 years, dating back to the mid-1940s.

During public comment, parks and recreation commissioner Mike Carouba thanked staff and the council for moving forward on the project.

"This is a badly-needed win for the (recreation) side of the house," he said. "People ask us when we're here, and they wonder what comes first, the chicken or the egg. Is our athleticism declining because of lack of interest in sports, or because or facilities have declined?"

According to News-Sentinel archives, Tony Zupo, Sr., Herb Handel and Ed DeBenedetti approached the local Guild Winery about sponsoring a Lodi team. A deal was made, and in 1946, the Lodi Guild Wines began playing against Northern California prison teams.

Zupo managed the team until his death in the mid-1980s. John Nilmeyer took over in 1986, and that year asked the city to change the stadium's name to Tony Zupo Field, according to a Lodi City Council agenda report from Dec. 17 of that year.

"In 2019, when we had the fire, I asked (Schwabauer) how are we going to spend money for this? We don't have the money," Councilman Alan Nakanishi said. "People came forward, and everybody wanted it. Now, four years later, it's amazing what we've done so far. We should make it better than it was."

Vice mayor Lisa Craig said she remembered attending minor league games when the Crushers were affiliated with the Cubs and Dodgers.

"I remember fondly that site," she said. "This is a major landmark that we have the opportunity to not only bring back to support the local community and sports, but also be an attraction for others out of the area."

Waste collection rates approved

The Lodi City Council unanimously approved new waste collection rates Wednesday night, to take effect retroactively as of April 1.

Rates for a 20-gallon cart will increase from $20.82 to $21.85, while rates for a single 35-gallon cart will increase from $30.60 to $32.11.

A single 64-gallon cart will increase from $46.06 to $48.34, and rates for a single 96-gallon cart will increase from $100.37 to $105.34.

The increases are in line with the Consumer Price Index, which the city and Waste Management use to calculate rates.