big success

The Cooperstown Bicentennial Committee brought off a memorable week of events. Many people were involved in making it happen and the committee thanks them all.

I, as the Chair of the committee, am especially indebted to all who helped. However, my special thanks go to the committee members who faithfully attended meetings each month for the better part of a year and helped plan and implement these events, giving freely of their time and expertise: Carol Bedworth, Paul Bedworth, Bob Lettis, Hugh MacDougall, Rich McCaffrey, Amanda Pinney, Polly Renckens and May-Britt Joyce, who expertly handled our finances, and to Jim Kevlin for his help and support.

Also, to my daughter, Dianne, who helped me in ways too many to enumerate and who designed the banner that hung across Main Street and the Cachet, which is also the cover of the Official Programme.

I must include in my thanks, my family who encouraged me throughout the Bicentennial year and who traveled from California, Arizona, New Hampshire and Maine to give me moral and physical support; my children, Stephen and Mary Giles, and David and Billie, my grandsons, Ben and Andy, and great-grandsons, Kanah and Will. And, thanks to the firemen who presented me with a beautiful bouquet of flowers and escorted me so affectionately on my ride of a lifetime down Main Street on the back of old Engine No. 1.

Love and God Bless,

Grace Kull

Chairperson, Cooperstown Bicentennial Committee

Fee increase discriminatory

The recent increase in fees to use the venerable Doubleday Field is probably justified in light of the predicament most municipalities in the northeast suffer.

What I strongly object to is the fee schedule which is proposed. It is discriminatory and possibly illegal. It adversely affects any group which schedules multi-day events. Why? The answer escapes me. Why should the daily fees ($1,000 a game) be any different among the users? Everyone who uses the field should pay the same.

The leaders of Cooperstown should reconsider the proposed fee schedule. They should also recognize that Legends of Baseball contributes enormously to the field and the local economy.

We should not have to suffer from this discriminatory practice. It is unfair and reflects badly on the village.

Thomas Cretella

Clinton, Conn.

Increase unreasonable

Having recently returned from Cooperstown for my eighth year in a row attending the Legends of Baseball tournament in September, I was dismayed to hear about the onerous fee increase being discussed for use of Doubleday Field by this tournament’s organizers.

While I am a businessman and understand the need to maximize one’s revenue potential, if I ever subjected my clients to a 250 percent increase in fees, I would find my customers looking for other alternatives. Legends of Baseball will need to pass along these increases to its participants making it difficult for many to attend next year’s camps.

I just spent well over $1,200 "post Labor Day, mid-week" dollars at one of your hotels, several of your shops and restaurants, a wonderful brunch at the Otesaga Hotel, supermarkets, gas stations and yes, the Hall of Fame. These expenditures far surpass the cost of the tournament itself. One must also take into account a second hotel room for my father, several rooms for my teammates and other players in the tournament as well as their out-of-pocket expenses. Also, multiply my figure times the eight years I’ve visited for the tournament and I feel I’ve contributed well to the local economy.

Do single game day trippers spend that type of money in Cooperstown? I think not.

A major increase in tournament fees might have me looking elsewhere for my baseball fix. A reasonable or phased in increase is understandable. Let reason prevail.

Jim Frawley

Meriden, Conn.