By Pam Wright
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
A new four-diamond baseball facility is on the horizon for South Kent.
At its Aug. 10 meeting, Chatham-Kent council took a big step towards the $16.7-million development by approving the $1.5-million purchase of 32 acres at 9267 Allison Line in Blenheim.
The land acquisition by the municipality is being made in conjunction with the Chatham-Kent Public Utilities Commission. Plans are in the works by PUC to build a reservoir at the site as part of an upgrade to supply water to Ridgetown and Highgate.
A total of $1.4 million of the sale is being paid through the Hydro One Community Benefit Reserve, with around $147,000 of the cost coming from PUC coffers.
The site will have a multi-use designation, with 23.88 acres to be used for the ball diamonds and three to five acres for the reservoir.
South Kent Coun. Anthony Ceccacci said the response to the South Kent Ball Diamond Complex proposal has been the “most positive” he’s received regarding a large-scale C-K project, since he was elected eight years ago.
“In South Kent we have an amazing group of volunteers and coaches, of extremely dedicated corporate sponsors,” Ceccacci told council, adding that while there are a lot of strategic development needs in C-K, the new baseball complex is important.
“We can’t pay for a lot of those things without growth and without investing in our community,” he said. “I hope council supports this as a whole because the community is really excited.”
Ceccacci pointed out the need for new ball diamonds in Ward 2 has been conveyed to him by user groups ever since he was elected to council eight years ago.
“It’s something I’ve come back to, to administration, year after year,” he explained.
Fellow South Kent Coun. Ryan Doyle said the demand for more baseball diamonds is there.
“It definitely something that’s needed and something the community is behind,” Doyle said, adding the site and design are “both great. I’m happy to put my support behind this.”
In December 2025, council adopted the 2025 Parks and Recreation Master Plan, which recommended the development of a new baseball complex in Chatham-Kent. At the time, council approved $2 million in funding, to be pulled from two different reserve funds, to undertake exploratory work as part of a feasibility study.
To that end, a total of six potential properties were screened and assessed, with the Allison Line property coming out on top.
The municipality is open to sponsorship and naming rights for the complex and will be applying for upper-level funding and grants for the project as they become available.
In his comments, chief financial officer Gord Quinton said government funding is much more accessible to municipalities if projects are shovel ready.
“You really need to have the land and design work done before you go to upper levels of government,” Quinton said. “Without having the land, you’re probably shifted to the other pile.”
About 40 deputations were put forward to council in support of the new baseball complex.
