Colebrook baseball field to get its own Snack Shack

COLEBROOK — Colebrook residents will soon be a be able to enjoy a cool drink or a fresh serving of ice cream while they watch an afternoon baseball game this summer at the town’s Little League field.

Volunteers donated their time, know-how and a little elbow grease Saturday, May 15, to erect a new concession stand at the baseball field located at the end of Cooper Lane in Colebrook. Organizers for the project are calling the building the Snack Shack.

Previously, if parents, friends or other spectators wanted to enjoy something to eat or drink during a game or practice, they had to pack and bring their own.

But Paul Odell, one of the volunteers who participated in Saturday’s building, said the players and their fans will now be able to purchase the usual game-time fare at the new stand.

“We are going to be serving snacks, drinks and ice cream,� Odell said, adding that the building should be complete and open for service sometime within the next week or two. “It’s great, because all the town teams play here at the field.�

The project, which also includes refurbishing the field’s batting cage and relocating it next to the stand, was funded through the Recreation Department.

According to Odell, the final cost to build the stand will be just under $4,000. The expense was kept to a minimum due to residents donating materials, equipment and their time to the project.

“The department has been saving up for some time for this,� Odell said.

Odell said the ability to have a working concession stand at the field was only made possible after town employees recently completed running underground power lines from the top of Cooper Lane past the field and all the way to the nearby pond.

The stand can now tap into that source to keep the cool drinks cold in the summertime, the hot drinks warm in the wintertime — and all the months in between.

“This will allow the area to be used all year round,� he said of the new power source, noting that the field’s parking lot is flooded during the winter months to create an ice skating rink.

Although the building frame has been erected, organizers are still in need of items to furnish the inside of the stand. Those items include kitchen cabinets, a refrigerator, upright or chest freezer, microwave, cash register, large dry erase board, stainless steel sink and a small handwashing sink.

Odell said the stand itself will also be run by an all-volunteer crew during games.

“It’s a whole town effort,� he said.

For more information or to donate an item, call Cary Wald at 860-379-4183.

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