City May Have to Replace Three More Light Poles at All Pro Freight Stadium

The may have to replace three light poles at , Services Director Jerry Plas said.

“We met with other city officials this morning to figure at a game plan,” Plas said Monday.

After a and toppled to the ground in the late hours of Dec. 14 or the early hours of Dec. 15, Plas said the city has been consulting with RWL Architects and Osborne Architects, and the firms identified three additional poles with possible structural damage.

“There’s a possibility those will have to come down and sent back to the manufacturer,” he said.

The next step is to meet with insurance agents to determine the damage, and Plas said city law director John Gasior is giving advice as to the “possible legal ramifications” the city has “in terms of getting financially reimbursed for the replacement of the structures.”

The original tower, located on the southwest side of the stadium, fell onto the Picnic Plaza, located in an elevated area behind the right field seats, crushing a railing and landing on several tables and chairs.

Winds had been forecast to gust as high as 40 miles an hour last Wednesday into Thursday

Dan Helm, vice president of the , said the cause of the light tower’s collapse remains unknown.

“It happened overnight, so there was no eyewitness account,” Helm said.

While Plas declined to disclose the manufacturer and the installer of the light poles, he said construction on the replacements likely won’t happen until spring, but the stadium will be ready when the first pitch is thrown in May.

“We’re trying to move as rapidly as we can,” he said. “It’s going to cost some money to get this straightened up.”