Photo Provided Representatives from Chick-fil-A, St. Clairsville, present a donation to the city’s recreation department. This will cover the balance of a scoreboard for the new Belmont County Savings Bank Field, which should be playable by April 1. Pictured are Mayor Kathryn Thalman, from left, Junior Sports board member Justin Clifford, player Max King, player Ethan Blacker, Chick-fil-A owners Janet and Stacy Austin, player Savannah Cisar, Parks and Rec Director Eric Gay, player Grace McFarland and board member David Edwards.

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — A donation from Chick-fil-A at the Ohio Valley Mall put the J.B. Martin Recreation Center over the line in its fundraising efforts to purchase a new scoreboard.

This, in turn, caps off the city’s renovated ballfield, and Recreation Director Eric Gay said it should be in use by April 1 when the next baseball/softball season starts — and that is no April Fool’s prank.

Chick-fil-A presented the $4,000 check Wednesday. Gay said this supplements money raised during the Thanksgiving Turkey Trot fundraiser.

“We’re finally able to put the finishing touches on the field. That money they gave us paid for the balance of what the scoreboard is going to cost. Now we have a total, completed project because of the generosity of Chick-fil-A,” Gay said.

He said the total cost of the scoreboard is about $9,500.

“We’re optimistic and hoping it would be up by the start of the season, but the field itself is completed, it’s ready to be played on other than just a few small little things we still have to do,” he said. “It’s just a major piece that’s going to complete that field.”

Gay said the Belmont Savings Bank Field will be game-ready by the beginning of the season, thanks to the donors and sponsors.

“Belmont Savings, they were the huge donor to get this project started in the first place,” he said, adding that other major sponsors included the St. Clairsville Junior Sports Association, St. Clairsville-Richland City Schools District, and American Legion Post 159.

“We all came together, needed to get this project done, and we were able to do the dugouts, the fencing, new infield, new outfield,” he said. “We fell short of the money to finish the scoreboard.”

He said work on the field began about a year ago.

“It’s going to be a facility everybody’s going to be proud of, and the amount of work that went into it by so many groups … it’s amazing the things that we can do when everybody comes together with a common goal to get things accomplished,” Gay said.

Gay added that the total $125,000 cost was provided entirely by donations and fundraisers. He said between the various community organizations, about 500-600 children may use the facilities.

“I know that one more field might not seem like a lot, but it is. Us having the ability to add one more field for those kids, it was much-needed,” he said.

He commended all the donors who believed in the project and in bettering the facilities for young people.

“I just can’t thank everybody enough for everything that they do,” Gay said. “It’s quite a few people who made this come to fruition. We just can’t thank the sponsors enough for what they do for us. We couldn’t do it without them.”

The junior sports complex is along Market Street north of the courthouse.