Recreation Commission approves new Schwartz Field sign, defers naming policy

WAYLAND — January 29, 2026 — Wayland Recreation Commission approves redesigned Schwartz Ball Field sign and shelves $37,000 restroom-opening plan. Commissioners voted 4-0 Thursday to approve a 60-by-30-inch replacement sign at the Eric Schwartz Ball Field on Riverview Avenue, paid for by the Schwartz family. Chair Asa B. Foster said a broader park naming policy drafted by commissioner Lesley Stewart will go to the Select Board liaison before further work. Recreation Director Heather told the board opening the new high school restroom building on weekends would cost roughly $37,000 a year in custodial overtime — about $275 per shift with a five-hour minimum — or $87,000 if extended to weeknights; the commission opted for additional portable toilets this spring instead. The town's water rate is rising at least 28 percent, adding $40,000 to $50,000 to the field account, complicating a separate push to restore outdoor ice skating, which Joe Palazzotti of the Wayland Hockey Association urged be sited on grass because asphalt "melts the ice from the bottom up."