The Lauderdale County School Board was hoping to have upgrades in place by the spring at Northeast and Southeast Lauderdale’s softball fields, but those plans are currently on hold, according to LCSD Superintendent John Mark Cain.

The locker rooms, indoor practice facilities and public restrooms at both school’s softball fields are district-wide priorities, and a local architect has drawn up plans for those improvements. Plans were paused in June after the architect told the board about rising construction costs, but Cain said the board has every intention to follow through with the upgrades once prices are more reasonable.

“We were ready to hit the ground running, but he came to the board last month with basically not-so-good news saying commodity prices have risen almost 60%, and the workforce was difficult to get on site,” Cain said. “Commodities and supplies were difficult to obtain and have a three- to four-month window of time getting on site for work.

“He basically proposed to the board to pause and go ahead and get everything we can to basically be shovel ready by the time the upcoming season concludes. He said there’d be no way to get it done before the upcoming season if we were continuing at the current pace.”

Cain said the architect plans to give the board an update in October about whether or not commodity prices and workforce availability have improved.

“We’re still committed to it fully, but we’re having to face the same problems everyone else is in the construction industry,” Cain said.

Northeast Lauderdale softball coach Hayley Stephens said she and the players are excited about the planned upgrades, and they look forward to when they can finally be implemented.

“We’ve had surveyors come out, and we just met not too long ago with the architect,” Stephens said. “We already have floor plans drawn up. (The players are) very excited to get their own locker room and a facility to call their home for six years if they play middle school up through graduation. We’re excited to get a closer group and culture going at Northeast that will be softball-oriented.”

The upgrades are needed, Stephens said, and it’s something for which she’s pushed on behalf of her players.

“I think Northeast has been through so many coaches in the past that they never really had anyone to advocate for them and push those things,” Stephens said. “I’m not saying people in the past didn’t care, but I think I’m the first coach in a while who’s bought into the program and wanted to see it grow and focus on that aspect.”

While good facilities alone don’t lead to a winning program, Stephens said they help with the morale of the players and coaches.

“They’re not everything — I’m a firm believer in hard work no matter what the circumstances — but I think it’s important to have the same facilities in order to be on the same playing level as other teams,” Stephens said. “It’s important to have the equipment to push the girls to be the best athletes they can be.”

As the parent of a softball player, Cain said he understands the importance of good facilities as well.

“We want all of our student-athletes, male and female, to have the best experience and the best facilities they can,” Cain said. “We know as a district we have to make that commitment, and our board is dedicated to making that commitment. We’re committed to making sure that gets done for all of our athletes but especially for these two areas we know need work sooner rather than later.”

Despite the delay, Stephens said herself, school and district faculty are all on the same page.

“They’re keeping me in the loop, and I’m very grateful for what the county offices are trying to do,” Stephens said. “We don’t try to compare to any other district or school, we just want to do what’s best for our girls. We’re pushing to get this done but also know that prices are crazy right now. Dr. Cain has been very good to us, and we’ve even had meetings with him where he’s approved things for us, so we’ll be ready when it happens.”