Dartmouth to Dedicate Red Rolfe Field at Biondi Park

HANOVER, N.H. ? The general public is invited to attend the formal dedication of Red Rolfe Field at Biondi Park, the baseball facility at Dartmouth College, on Friday afternoon at 3 p.m. Made possible by a $5.2 million gift from Mike and Cindy Biondi, Dartmouth class of 1979 and '80, respectively, the project includes a synthetic FieldTurf surface, permanent seating for 650 spectators (with 405 chair-back seats) with the ability to add more than 1,000 temporary seats, a new scoreboard, dugouts, batting cages, bullpens, a press box and landscaping.

“This gift has special meaning for all of us who have had the privilege to work closely with Cindy and Mike Biondi,” said Dartmouth President James Wright. “Always concerned with the welfare of current students, always ready to lend their time and expertise, they have led by example. There was no bigger Dartmouth baseball fan ? and, of course, Mets fan ? than Mike. We're grateful that this gift will have a lasting impact on our student-athletes, the game of baseball at Dartmouth and the wider community.”

The conceptual plans for the new ballpark were finalized just before Mike Biondi died tragically of sudden cardiac arrest last Nov. 12. As the Co-Chairman of Investment Banking and a managing director at Lazard, Biondi was considered one of the nation's top mergers and acquisition bankers. After Dartmouth, he earned an MBA and JD in the joint-degree program at the University of Pennsylvania. He was a former member of the President's Leadership Council, vice-chair of the Campaign for the Dartmouth Experience, and co-chair of the Dartmouth College Fund Committee.

Cindy Biondi earned an MBA from Wharton after graduating from Dartmouth, and worked as a management consultant in New York. She is a member of the President's Leadership Council at Dartmouth and a vice chair of the Campaign for the Dartmouth Experience. She was formerly a co-chair of the Dartmouth College Fund Committee, co-chair of the Class of 1980 20th Reunion Giving Committee, and an alumni fund volunteer. She is a director for the Breast Cancer Alliance and the Boys and Girls Club of Greenwich.

The construction manager for the project was Clark Companies out of Delhi, N.Y. Gale Associates, Inc., of Boston, Mass., served as the field design consultants, while Lavallee Brensinger Architects of Manchester, N.H., and Saucier & Flynn of West Lebanon, N.H., were the architectural firms for the grandstand and landscaping, respectively.

The placement of the ballpark was strategic to preserve the semicircular plaza on the south side of Alumni Gym, historically the gateway to the athletic field complex. This feature unifies the pedestrian gateway to Alumni Gym, Red Rolfe Field at Biondi Park, Memorial Field and Floren Varsity House. The development of the park provided an opportunity to redevelop the area along Park Street with a pedestrian sidewalk and hedge row beyond the outfield fence, while American Elms were planted as well. This effort was a collaboration with the Town of Hanover to continue a process of beautifying and improving the streetscape of Park Street.

Prior to the start of the season, Josie Harper, Director of Athletics and Recreation said, “This ballpark will satisfy our programmatic needs, and allow a sport with a storied history at Dartmouth to be as successful as it can be. At the northernmost Ivy League school, the weather isn't always so kind to spring sports. The artificial playing surface will greatly enhance our ability to practice and compete on the field.”

The baseball team is quickly proving that point, owning a record of 20-11 overall and the Ivy League's best conference record at 14-2. The Big Green have won 19 of their past 21 games, including 10 of the 11 played at the facility. Dartmouth will host Harvard on Saturday for a doubleheader at 1 p.m., with President James Wright and the two youngest Biondi sons, William and Cameron, throwing out ceremonial first pitches.

The forecast for Friday afternoon calls for sunny skies and temperatures in the low 70s, but in the event of rain, the dedication will take place in West Gym.