Now that Neri Brothers are winding down their construction work on Burlington and elsewhere, they will have to restore the two lots at 61 & 63 Burlington they have been using for materials and equipment storage. Perhaps we can get them to install bocce courts and make a little park out of it with an attraction that would bring people into the CBD? The Village can suggest they do this as an alternative to putting it back into what was essentially just a grassy area. The will try if we can organize a group to maintain them - which is not very hard. The Rec dept. could sponsor bocce tournaments for all ages, maybe the ball sets could be kept somewhere like Grumpys where they could be checked out, etc. Any ideas? If you want to see what courts are like here's a link, or just google "bocce courts" and you will find all kinds of info.
Riverside Info » About Riverside
Bocce, Anyone?
(6 posts)-
Posted Friday Aug 27, 2010 12:48 #
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I love the idea.
What is the first step?Posted Saturday Aug 28, 2010 15:42 # -
If five or six people show some interest in pursuing this than I'll ask the Board to pursue it, and we can see if the Nerri Bros. will cooperate. We could even name it the Al Neri Memorial Courts - anyone know who Al Neri was? Mr. Foley - who may be out of town and hasn't seen this, told me he would volunteer with construction/maint. a while back, and Joe Ballerine told me he thought it was a good idea for the CBD. There should be some seating, maybe a couple picnic tables, a grill, etc. Leagues could be formed, it could be a fun activity for people of all ages, some spirited competition, and bring people into the CBD. The courts I used to play at in CA were wildly successful (in San Rafael, CA - I think they may have a web site which I'll try to find. I wanted to get an old CB&Q caboose to have there as a place to vend food/drinks, etc., but that may be too ambitious. Anyone interested get in touch...
http://www.yelp.com/biz/marin-bocce-federation-san-rafael-2
I found this:
"Albert Park
Off Route 101, between B Street and Lindaro Street
San Rafael, CAContributed by Project for Public Spaces
Six outdoor bocce courts, surrounded by cafe tables, planting beds, and a food kiosk, helped make this 11-acre park a thriving community place.
Click on any image for slide show
For more images of Albert Park or other places, try searching our Image Collection
Why It Works
Located along the edge of Albert Park, the bocce courts have become one of the main centers of outdoor activity in San Rafael. Stewardship has increased in the park, resulting from the innovative design process used by the parks director: A once-unused area now has people who care for it, because local residents were involved in the entire process of revitalizing the park. Not only did they select bocce as a new use for the park, but they also helped to install the courts at greatly reduced cost. Now, the area is maintained by the Marin County Bocce Federation, and nearly every evening groups gather to play bocce, have picnic dinners, and socialize. People also bring cuttings from their yards to donate to the planting beds.History & Background
Albert Park occupies a spot in downtown San Rafael between the business district and the residential community of Gerstle Park. The park has baseball diamonds, tennis courts, a children's play area, and an active community center. But over the years, a five-acre portion had been colonized by transients. A makeover was spurred by local residents who attended a series of meetings with San Rafael's Director of Parks and Recreation, Sharon McNamee. These meetings formed a vision for the park, and led to the creation of a master plan which included bocce courts, a garden, a porch to link the community center to the park, two new play areas, and a creek restoration project.In a unique community-based process, separate committees undertook each element of the plan. Early on, a bocce committee member found old photographs of Albert Park that showed bocce courts in an area adjacent to what was then primarily an Italian neighborhood. Excited about reconnecting the city with its heritage, local residents canvassed San Rafael's clubs, restaurants and shops to raise support for bocce. The Marin Bocce Federation, a non-profit organization, was formed to raise money to build and run the facility. Federation members surveyed public bocce courts in nearby Bay Area towns, and Italian-Americans with links to San Rafaels sister city in Italy, Lonate Pazzolo (where many of San Rafael's Italian residents trace their ancestry) provided information from visits to Italian facilities.
The city approved the proposal for bocce courts and provided seed money to begin construction. The proposal had a number of elements that made it an attractive project for the city: the courts were sited along the street, creating activity in the most visible part of the park; the federation had secured sponsorship and in-kind donations before the approval, allowing this project to have a quick impact on other park improvements; bocce appeals to all ages and types of people; and the federation wanted to build top-of-the-line courts to attract tournaments and attention to San Rafael. Six state-of-the-art courts were built into a surrounding brick patio area, with a wheelchair-accessible building providing a restroom, kitchen and administrative office for the federation. An expensive synthetic surface for the courts has paid off considerably by limiting maintenance and making the courts playable year-round.
Indeed, the courts are a major source of civic pride for the city, attracting between 400 and 600 people a week for the league, and many more casual visitors and players. Twelve teams, with 10-12 people per team, compete every evening of the week. Players and their families come from all over San Rafael, with wine, picnics and barbecues. Seniors, who use the park's community center extensively but rarely ventured into the park before, now have a daytime league of their own. Local politicians and city managers hold meetings at the park and show it to outsiders. Television features, newspaper reports, and a newsletter have attracted bocce enthusiasts from all over the country and from Europe. Expansion of the facility to eight courts will allow for world-class tournament play."
This could be just the kind of thing that would really help our CBD. We need to think outside the box and get creative. Think about it before you knock it.
Posted Saturday Aug 28, 2010 16:09 # -
Here are some pix of courts in Illinois...
Posted Saturday Aug 28, 2010 16:21 # -
Pretty good company - Barrington, Northbrook - and a nice idea for getting kids involved. Why don't we do this???
"March 9, 2010 -- It's "TV Tune Out Week" and children across the country are promising to get up off the couch, put away the video games and get active. Why not use the time to learn a new sport? How about Bocce Ball? It's a family-friendly game that's fun and easy to learn, says Chris Soukup of Pinstripes. The Italian-American bistros in suburban Northbrook and South Barrington house several Bocce courts alongside their bowling alleys. Children, who show their "TV Tune Out" buttons, will get a free game at Pinstripes through Saturday.
While Bocce Ball is often considered the game of choice for retirees, Pinstripes is introducing the traditional Italian sport to a new generation. Pinstripes team members have taught over 7,000 elementary school students how to play bocce ball. They partner with local schools a few times each month to teach bocce during gym glass. Pinstripes has portable courts, which makes it very easy to teach on different surfaces. After each class, the students receive "Masters in Bocce" diplomas.
Pinstripes has also partnered with over 100 local teachers to encourage students to read. Pinstripes Reading Coupons are given out to each student who reads a designated number of pages (ranging by student grade level), which is then redeemable for a complimentary bowling or bocce game. The program has caught on quickly, with the participation of some entire schools.
Basic Bocce Rules:
The object of bocce ball is to get your team's balls closest to the pallino (small target ball). This can be accomplished by throwing/rolling your team's bocce balls to stop near the pallino, knocking opponent's balls away from the pallino with your team's balls, knocking your team's balls that are closer to the pallino, or knocking the pallino closer to balls that are already in play. If a ball hits the back wall, it is a "dead ball" and is out of play.
Generally, bocce is played to 7 points, with one point earned by the team closest to the pallino for each ball that is closer to the pallino than the next closest opponent ball. When playing with four balls, a maximum of 4 points can be earned on one frame, and a minimum of 1 point will be earned. Two competing teams will be comprised of 1, 2, or 4 players each.
Bocce History:
Who knew that throwing balls towards something else could be so much fun? Even back in the day (as in WAY back), people in Egypt drew pictures of people throwing polished rocks. It's from this early objective that the rules of Bocce were born. From Egypt, the game made its way to Greece who then introduced it to the Romans, and it eventually spread throughout the empire.
The Romans were the ones who played a game resembling what we know as Bocce today. At first, they used coconuts brought back from Africa, but then figured it was easier to throw hard olive wood carved out than inconsistently sized coconuts. This new game spread rapidly throughout Europe to people of all classes, from peasants to even nobility.
The game's popularity spread so fast that it took too much time away from archery practice and other military exercises. It got so out of hand that both the Roman emperor Charles IV and King Carlos of Spain outlawed the game in their countries. Yet the game was preserved and still managed to thrive in Great Britain, and spread again throughout the European countries.
Notably the first Italian league was formed by fifteen teams in and around the town of Torino. Thanks to many Italian immigrants at the turn of the century, Bocce has come to flourish in the United States."
Posted Saturday Aug 28, 2010 16:27 # -
Here's an interesting WSJ article on Bocce in Highwood, IL. That's right, Highwood, just north of Highland Park.
http://online.wsj.com/article/NA_WSJ_PUB:SB121399535061492827.html
Posted Saturday Aug 28, 2010 19:05 #
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