FAIRHOPE — The City of Fairhope has agreed on a non-exclusive lease agreement with Baldwin County Public Schools for improvements at Volanta Park and Founders Park.

The agreement was approved by Fairhope City Council during its meeting on Monday, Nov. 9. It is a non-exclusive lease agreement between the City of Fairhope and the Board of Education of Baldwin County Public Schools and includes an over $3.2 million contribution from Baldwin County Public Schools for use toward the projects.

Councilman Jay Robinson explained that the county school board had already approved upgrades to Fairhope High School but has also allocated money for improvements to Volanta Park and Founders Park.

"In order to do that, we needed to formalize that relationship of field use in the terms of this non-exclusive lease that we put in front of you," Robinson said during the City Council meeting. "That is not designed to expand the scope of use or change the relationship we've always had. It's designed to formalize that relationship to allow the Fairhope public schools to use those fields for their varsity sports, including baseball, football, softball and soccer, amongst other activities that may normally take place at these locations."

The proposed updates at Volanta Park include improvements to the baseball structures such as new batting cages and bullpens, locker room and training facility upgrades, and replacement of the outfield fencing with a "champions wall." In addition, the football field will receive a new press box and new fencing around the perimeter.

At Founders Park, the girls softball team will receive a "completely new" softball field with an indoor facility, press box and restrooms.

"The upgrades that are proposed are going to be significant," Robinson said. "They're really going to be a benefit to the kids that get to use those on a daily basis and I'm incredibly grateful to the school board for offering to make those improvements on our property through the use of this particular agreement."

Baldwin County Public Schools Superintendent Marty McRae expressed his excitement for the improvements, particularly the girls' softball projects and improvements.

"It is something that we have been working on for a while and we're looking at ways that we can partner with all of our cities, but with Fairhope being a little bit unique as I was saying, we want to do things that make sense for Fairhope," McRae said. "Providing these opportunities will make a big difference here."