At the next Old Orchard Beach Town Council meeting, the council will be voting on whether to allow a College Futures League baseball team to come to town, where it would play its home games at The Ballpark.

We urge the council to approve the team.

Last summer Old Orchard Beach was home to the Old Orchard Beach Raging Tide, a team with the New England Collegiate Baseball League that also has the Sanford Mainers. The Raging Tide allowed baseball fans in York County another opportunity to see the game played at a higher level.

Unfortunately, the team only had a one-year contract with the town, and as of late November became defunct after a sale of the team to investors in Pittsfield, Mass. fell through.

This leaves Old Orchard Beach without an anchor team. In a community such as OOB, in the summer time and with the beauty of The Ballpark, not having a full-time team in town would be a shame.

The Ballpark officials do a great job attracting tournaments and other games to the park. Last year, for example, The Ballpark hosted the New England American Legion Baseball regionals and the Small College Baseball Championships. Each event was a success, and through baseball, it allowed Old Orchard Beach to promote itself.

Old Orchard Beach triples in size during the summer as it becomes a tourist destination. Why not give tourists and local residents the benefit of cheering for a home-town team? If anything, it is another source of revenue for       the town.

Having an anchor team will boost business for the town as well, since home games attract fans from throughout southern Maine. Home games will also attract fans of the visiting teams. This will mean an increase in hotel use, restaurant use and miscellaneous shopping. Either way, it’s a win-win for the town and baseball fans.

The Ballpark is also a park of nostalgia as many baseball fans in Maine vividly remember attending Maine Guides games and top level University of Maine baseball games there before it closed down for more than 20 years.

When it reopened two years ago, the excitement it created was electric and the town must continue to capitalize on that feeling.

By also allowing a baseball team to come to town, it will also create lasting memories for a new generation of fans who were too young to remember The Ballpark’s heyday. The experience of attending a baseball game at the park on a warm, summer evening captures the essence of what it means to spend the “lazy” days of summer in Maine.

To the east in Old Orchard Beach, one is surrounded by the ocean. To the west, there is a perfect venue for quality family entertainment that many communities just can’t offer.

The Raging Tide last year were one of the worst teams in the NECBL, but that didn’t matter to the fans. They enjoyed the experience and cheered for their team at a pace greater than most of the other 11 teams in the NECBL.

We’d like to see Old Orchard Beach give those same fans the chance to cheer again.

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Today’s editorial was written by Sports Editor Al Edwards on behalf of the Journal Tribune Editorial Board. Questions? Comments? Contact Managing Editor Kristen Schulze Muszynski by calling 282-1535, Ext. 322, or via e-mail at kristenm@journaltribune.com.