JERSEY CITY — The city’s largest municipal park is now home to a brand new baseball field.
City officials celebrated the grand opening of the field at Berry Lane Park with a ribbon cutting ceremony on Thursday afternoon.
Jersey City received a $185,000 grant for the field through the Baseball Tomorrow Fund, a joint initiative between Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association. The grant funded lighting for the filed.
The nearly $40 million, 17.5 acre park opened in June on Garfield Avenue.
“Jersey City thrives when we invest in our people, that’s why new parks like Berry Lane, and the expanded recreation programming this baseball field will support are so important,” Mayor Steve Fulop said. “It gives children an opportunity to participate, get active within their community, and learn valuable life skills to use on and off the field.
The Ferris High School baseball team, which plans to use the field for games and practice, attended the event. Fulop threw a ceremonial first pitch to the team’s catcher.
The grand opening came less than 24 hours after the Chicago Cubs won the World Series for the first time in 108 years.
“As all of us at MLB and the MLBPA celebrate this year’s exciting World Series, we thank the City of Jersey City for providing quality facilities and programs that will introduce new players to our game,” said Cathy Bradley, executive director of the Baseball Tomorrow Fund.
Caitlin Mota may be reached at cmota@jjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter @caitlin_mota. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook.
