Black Hawk College

Eriksson Engineering Associates, Ltd. provided civil engineering and landscape architecture services for a two-phased project that consisted of the demolition of the existing baseball field, as well as the construction of new synthetic turf baseball and softball fields at Black Hawk College. The original fields were located in two different areas, separated by buildings and parking lots. By re-locating the softball field adjacent to the baseball field, both activities can now share the same amenities, a similar fan base, and be part of a larger campus sports complex that also incorporates the track and field.

The project design utilized natural elevation changes to create a stadium atmosphere for both fields, in addition to providing new dugouts, bullpens, batting cages, LED field lighting, electronic scoreboards, fencing, a 40’ tall netting system, stadium press boxes, and a concessions building.

EEA’s civil engineers overcame grading challenges by carefully selecting ball field placement and orientation, while also strategically installing retaining walls as necessary. Our team met local stormwater requirements in an efficient manner, in terms of both cost and space, by making use of storage below grade at the softball field. To avoid expensive soil-haul, EEA was able to repurpose excess dirt into an onsite berm, which also serves as an informal seating area for spectators.

Seamless coordination between our civil and landscape architecture teams allowed EEA to take advantage of plantings to discourage foot traffic near steep drop offs and minimize landscape maintenance in hard-to-reach areas. The landscape plan aims to connect both fields as one continuous