SPORTING GROUNDS
“ It has four skinned infields on the corners and the green space is all located in the center,” said Neighbor.“ So we took aerial photos, looked at the imagery and how we use the fields, and how we could accommodate this. We run flag football in the fall and can run them at different angles on those Pee Wee diamonds. If we centered up that the concrete pitch in the middle of the fields and ran it north and south, we would still be able to run flag football.”
According to Neighbor, the Pee Wee fields don’ t have outfield fencing, and the 6 to 8 year olds who use the fields typically don’ t even get the ball out of the infield. So the concrete slab for the cricket pitch was able to be placed in the area where the outfields of the baseball fields meet, and the park could still accommodate everything it had in the past.
Seth Staashelm, CPRP, CPSI, director of parks and recreation for the City of Marion, pointed out that cricket is a culturally significant sport, and the city is pleased to be able to host cricket among its many sports and programs.
“ Multiple sports are able to coexist at our facilities,” Staashelm added.“ This isn’ t replacing anything; it’ s expanding access within the same footprint.”
According to Staashelm, the community impact of such partnerships with user groups is essential for the City of Marion, and sets an example for other agencies throughout the country.
According to the cricket club that uses the facility, the biggest driver for the popularity of cricket in Iowa is the technology industry within the state, which attracts many engineers and other professionals from traditional cricket-playing countries such as India, Pakistan, England and Australia. The main employer for the club that utilizes Lowe Park is Collins Aerospace, but people in the club also travel to play at other facilities.
The club was up front with the Marion Parks & Recreation Department that the center pitch area would receive the most wear and tear. From the onset of discussions, they requested the concrete slab as part of the facility. According to Neighbor, the city provided the space and manpower to install the concrete pitch, while the cricket club provided the funds for pouring the concrete, and also donates its time and knowledge to run a cricket program for local youth.
“ It’ s a very specific skill set to manage that that runway on a cricket field,” said Neighbor.“ It requires a lot of watering and rolling because they want it very fast
sportsfieldmanagementonline. com April 2026 | SportsField Management
29