A welcome drop in the temperatures and a scattering of fluffy clouds on Sept. 17 provided a respite from the record-breaking Phoenix, Ariz., heat. Cloud shadows and a slight breeze lasted long enough for everyone to enjoy the opening ceremonies of the Diamondbacks Youth Complex at the Reach 11 Sports Complex in northeast Phoenix.

Amid much fanfare and applause, Arizona Diamondbacks officials and team members joined contractors, politicians and government employees for the unveiling of four baseball fields. The new fields, two of which are adapted for youth with disabilities, are located along the Central Arizona Project canal.

The Bureau of Reclamation constructed the Central Arizona Project, a 336-mile-long system of siphons, tunnels, and canals. The project helps meet irrigation, municipal, industrial and tribal water needs by carrying Colorado River water from Lake Havasu to the Phoenix and Tucson areas of central Arizona.

Dikes along a stretch of the canal in the north Phoenix and Scottsdale areas protect the canal from flooding and debris. The lands on the north side of the dikes, essentially flood-detention basins, are the property of the United States. However, Reclamation law authorizes the use of lands like these for public recreation, if local entities construct, manage and maintain the facilities they build on them.

In addition, facilities within the flood-retention basins must be able to adapt to the possibility of occasional flooding. This has led to a unique recreational development along what is known as Reach 11 of the canal, through Reclamation's agreements with Scottsdale and Phoenix.

Scottsdale has developed such venues as WestWorld, famous for staging the Barrett-Jackson car auction and national Arabian and Quarter Horse shows. It also has created the Tournament Players Club golf course, which hosts nationally televised PGA tournaments.

In Phoenix, the amenities are less famous but no less world class. The city unveiled the 1,300-acre Reach 11 Sports Complex earlier this year, dedicating 10 lighted soccer fields and two playgrounds in Phase I. Phase II plans include 10 more soccer fields, a 4,000-seat stadium and an all-weather running track.

It is in this Reach 11 Sports Complex that the Diamondbacks have partnered with Phoenix and Reclamation to build two regulation-sized Little League fields and two adaptive fields.

The adaptive fields accommodate children with physical, sensory or cognitive disabilities. They are fully wheelchair accessible and feature open dugouts twice the size of traditional ones. According to Diamondbacks' Catherine Herman, the fields are smaller than regulation Little League fields and have a playing surface of TotTurf®, a rubber material conducive to wheelchair and walker use. These fields are named Rich Dozer Field (after former D-backs President Rich Dozer) and Partners Field (after the D-Backs General Partnership ownership group). They are only the second and third fields for youth with disabilities constructed in Arizona with the TotTurf® surface.

Those providing funding to build the fields and accompanying facilities include the Arizona Diamondbacks Foundation and the team, the Virginia G. Piper charitable Trust, Baseball Tomorrow Fund, Thunderbirds Charities, and several companies and individuals. The Bureau of Reclamation provided $1.5 million in matching funds for the project. Reclamation is authorized to cost-share up to 50 percent of construction costs for public recreation projects on its lands. The city of Phoenix will manage and maintain the facilities through an agreement with Reclamation.

At the dedication ceremony, Phoenix Area Manager Carol Erwin spoke about the day that fate (and a United Way Campaign meeting) put her in the same room with Rich Dozer, then president of the Diamondbacks. “I don't normally travel in the same circles as Rich,” Erwin said.  She took the opportunity to ask him if the Diamondbacks would be interested in building a baseball field in Phoenix for children with disabilities. “He said yes. I asked the city of Phoenix if they would be willing to maintain the field, and they said yes. From one field, the idea blossomed into the complex you see today.”

The Diamondbacks took the idea and ran with it.  That one field for children with special needs turned into two fields and then an additional two fields for regular Little League play. According to the Diamondbacks, the complex is the first in Arizona to allow children who experience a disability and children who do not to play baseball side by side.

“It's a long way from an idea to reality,” Erwin said. “Anywhere along that way, someone could have said no. There were certainly opportunities for that. But nobody did.  So I would like to thank everyone involved for being bold and for being determined and for being persistent. I think the outcome was worth the hard work.”

The emotional connection of the Diamondbacks officials to the community was obvious as they spoke to the crowd. “Of all the charitable activities of the Diamondbacks organization, this field building program is the closest to our hearts," General Partner and Chief Executive Officer Jeff Moorad said. "The community will benefit for years to come.”

Among the invited guests were members of the Challenger Little League team that will be playing on the adaptive fields. The children wore uniforms and Diamondbacks shirts and baseball caps and held onto their gloves and bats, ready to go! “The best part of the day was seeing the joy on the faces of the children from the Challenger Little League as they got to test out the adaptive field," Phoenix Area Office employee Candice Koda, an employee with the Phoenix Area Office, said.  "The kids were delighted to be a part of the grand opening celebration.”

Former Diamondbacks president Rich Dozer introduced his family, which includes a daughter with disabilities. He concluded his emotional speech to a standing ovation and the words, “It makes me so happy to think of all the smiles these fields will put on the faces of these special needs children.”

Representatives from the Phoenix Area Office who attended the event were impressed with the facilities.  “What impressed me more than anything was the quality of the finished product, especially the adaptive fields,” said Peter Castaneda, division chief, Water and Lands. Castaneda said he was happy to see Reclamation get good credit for its contribution to the site. “The attractive entry signs which include our name and seal were a nice extra.”

Some of the Phoenix Area Office employees were obvious Diamondbacks fans, so the chance to see their heroes made the day even more exciting for them. “There was real sincerity in the support for this project by both the D-Back execs and the players also, which was refreshing to hear,” Castaneda added. 

The city of Phoenix is already registering children for the Diamondbacks Reach League, which will play on the adaptive fields. There are two levels of play, accommodating boys and girls ages 6 to 16. The younger children will hit from a tee and use a buddy to assist them in the field. The older children will hit from a “coach pitch” and will not use a buddy.

The talking was over! It was time for two of the Reach League children to cut the ribbon with the help of the Diamondbacks mascot, Baxter the Bobcat. After a quick stop for free ice cream, all the kids were soon out on one of the adaptive fields, having fun! Play ball!