Willie Mays Park
Willie Mays Park (formerly 66th Street Park) is a Fairfield city park located at 409 66th Street at Avenue D. The triangular park was built shortly after World War II. The park was renovated in the 1970s and rededicated in honor of baseball-great and Fairfield native Willie Mays in 1985.
The park features a baseball field, basketball courts and a picnic area, all of which see heavy use by youth leagues, families and the general public. The baseball field is the home park for the Miles College Bears.
Mays' Say Hey Foundation is leading fundraising efforts for further renovations of the park, which may include improvements to the press box and concession stand, security arrangements, adding batting cages and scoreboards and establishing a maintenance program and possibly a traveling team.
Though Mays grew up in Fairfield, he never played baseball in the park because it was reserved for use by whites during the days of enforced segregation.
References
- Plott, Bill (March 18, 2009) "Willie Mays to visit hometown of Fairfield Saturday for kickoff of Willie Mays Park renovation project." Birmingham News