BIDDEFORD – A sign at Waterhouse Field has been stolen according to Jim Godbout, President of the Waterhouse Field Alumni Association.

Godbout said he received a phone call Friday morning that the sign, which reads “TIGER PRIDE,” was missing.

“They took the sign right off the press box,” he said.

Waterhouse Field is used by local sports teams and is owned by the Waterhouse Alumni Field Association and leased to the city for $1 a year. Godbout led and orchestrated an effort last year to renovate the field after it was temporary shut down because of safety concerns stemming from the field’s dilapidated wooden bleachers which have since been replaced.

Along with the new permanent aluminum bleachers, the Waterhouse Field renovation also saw new durable exterior fencing put up along Prospect Street and West Street adjacent to the sports venue and new lighting for the entire facility was installed last summer. A new state-of-the-art digital video scoreboard and high-tech speaker system were installed last fall and a press box, from which thew new sign was stolen, was constructed this past spring.

Godbout said the sign cost more than $1,000.

“It’s kind of a slap in the face to all the volunteers who worked on the project,” he said.

There were no surveillance cameras on site, as they were scheduled to be installed on Monday, said Godbout.

Still, Godbout maintains a positive attitude. He said there’s been an amazing outpouring of support from the greater community and some have offered to donate money toward a new sign.

“This may be a good thing,” he said, and could bring the community closer together and make it more resilient.

Godbout said a replacement sign will be up in time for opening day, Sept. 7.

“It’s already ordered,” he said. “We don’t sit down on our chairs. We make things happen.”

The Waterhouse Field Alumni Association asks anyone with any information on the alleged theft to call the Biddeford police.

— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or egotthelf@journaltribune.com.