Manning ticket prices set to rise

LYNN – If the Stadium Commission approves a plan backed by City Hall and high school athletic directors, the cost to attend sporting events at Manning Field will be going up next month, and the price of admission to Thanksgiving Day games will double.”Thanksgiving has been $5 for everybody but it will go to $10 for adults and $5 for seniors and students,” explained John Kasian from Community Development’s Youth Services.Regular ticket prices will increase from $5 for adults and $3 for students and seniors to $6 for adults and $4 for students and seniors.”We’re trying to keep a little closer to what other stadiums charge,” Kasian said.Funds generated from the increase will go directly to the School Department, Kasian added. The money is used to fund new sports equipment, he said. Kasian said 20 percent of ticket sales stays in the stadium fund to maintain the stadium but 80 percent goes back to the schools. He also noted that ticket sales is one way Lynn has staved off user fees for high school sports when other communities have come to rely on them.The Saugus School Committee is considering raising football and hockey fees from $350 to $400 and second-tier sports like soccer, basketball, volleyball or baseball would go up to $375. As of April 2012, Swampscott High School’s user fees were $250 per student, per sport, with a family cap at $1,250. Marblehead, Salem and Peabody also have user fees attached to high school athletics.Locally, only Lynn and Revere have kept user fees at bay.”Six dollars and $4 is not the high water mark,” Kasian said.Lynn Vocational Technical Institute Athletic Director Joe Skeadas said the increase puts Lynn on par with the Commonwealth Conference average. He said the increase is not a good idea, but a wise one.”I think it’s been a bargain for years and years,” he said.Skeadas admitted the increase for the Thanksgiving Day games is a little steep but since the money goes back into the programs, he believes it’s worth it.”We met on it last year, John and I and all the ADs, and we agreed on it,” Skeadas said.He also praised Kasian for the job he does scheduling the field, which includes wrangling football teams, soccer leagues, conference games and rain outs, along with other assorted events.The ticket increase is not yet a done deal. Kasian said the Stadium Commission still needs to vote on the issue but he expects it will happen shortly.”The plan is to have it in place for September,” he said.