Local youth sports league struggling to host games because of broken lights

PITTSBURGH — School may be out for the summer, but the games continue at the 9th Ward Youth Association fields or at least, they’re supposed to.

For 70 years, the program has operated in Lawrenceville, supporting young athletes through baseball and softball. The organization runs four softball teams and five baseball teams for players ranging in age from 4 to 18.

But recently, play has been disrupted, not because of the weather, but because of the lights.

Last fall, the organization began a project to replace old wooden light poles with new metal ones. New lighting fixtures were installed in April. But since then, the lights have never turned on.

“You put all this into it for the kids, and when they take it all away, it’s frustrating,” said Laura Frankert, a coach with the 9th Ward Youth program.

The inability to use the lights has forced the league to cancel or relocate many evening games, which are typically played around 8 p.m. Without lights, the field goes dark, and the organization loses more than just playtime.

Each canceled home game means a loss of up to $300 in concession sales, according to the league. That money helps cover expenses.

“We have to pay for umpires, we have to pay for everything to provide for the field — quick dry and balls, all the equipment you need for a team,” Frankert said. “The revenue also helps pay for kids, even though we get sponsors, it helps to pay for those kids that aren’t able to pay to play.”

Even the youngest players told Channel 11 they are feeling the impact.

“It feels sad, like it won’t be our home field,” said Madilynn Martoo, a youth softball player. “We don’t have lights, so we can’t play home.”

The association said they’ve contacted the city who pointed to Duquesne Light, whom the league then contacted several times about the issue but have not received a resolution. With playoffs scheduled for next week, the lack of lights puts the season’s final games in jeopardy.

Channel 11 reached out to Duquesne Light about the problem. Immediately, they sent a crew to the field to inspect the issue and provided the following statement.

Duquesne Light Company has maintained consistent communication with the City of Pittsburgh regarding the distribution of electric service to a baseball field in Lawrenceville. Following the recent receipt of required documentation from a city-contracted electrician that marked the completion of their preliminary work, DLC engineers were able to proceed with and finalize the design phase of the project. We are now in the process of scheduling the work and service connection.

As for when the lights will come on, that timeline is still unclear.

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