Dan Horn

dhorn@enquirer.com

Great American Ball Park is getting gussied up for its big date next summer.

The Reds' stadium will get about $1 million more than usual in repair work in the coming months so the place looks good for the 2015 All-Star Game in July.

Taxpayers will pick up the tab, but Hamilton County officials say they really aren't paying extra for the game because all of the work would have been done eventually even if the All-Star Game weren't coming next year. They say they just sped up the process and added about $1 million of repair work to this year's budget. Next year, they say, taxpayers will get a break because that work already will be done.

"We want the place to shine," said Joe Feldkamp, who oversees the stadium for the county. "We're not doing anything special for the All-Star Game. We're just pushing it forward."

In a normal baseball season, repairs might be done throughout the year, depending on the Reds' schedule. Next season, though, isn't a normal season. The July 14 game is expected to bring tens of thousands of visitors to Cincinnati, and the stadium will be front and center for an international TV audience.

Events at the stadium will run throughout the week and weekend and will include the Futures Game featuring young stars, a celebrity softball game, the home run derby and other activities.

County officials and the Reds want all maintenance projects done long before the visitors arrive, which is why they pushed up the maintenance schedule and pumped up this year's repair budget.

Feldkamp said the stadium is a decade old now, and it's important to stay on top of maintenance. "It's starting to show some signs of wear, so we're staying ahead of it," he said.

The lease agreement with the Reds requires the county to cover routine maintenance of the ballpark, and Feldkamp said the county budgets about $1 million a year for that purpose. This year, he said, 2015 maintenance will be performed at the same time as 2014 maintenance.

County commissioners will be asked to approve some of that work Wednesday, when they vote on two of the larger maintenance projects.

A bid for painting gates, light standards, handrails, the steel structure and decking came in at $356,600, and a bid for concrete work and waterproofing came in at $107,303. Soon, the county also will solicit bids to replace speakers throughout the stadium, at an estimated cost of $275,000.

The stadium leases for both the Bengals and the Reds have been a source of frustration and controversy for county officials and taxpayers for years, mostly because they require taxpayers to cover many future costs, such as a big share of the Bengals' new scoreboard.

County officials say speeding up the maintenance schedule ahead of the All-Star Game makes sense because it's not expected to cost more in the long run. Plus, they say, it's not every year the stadium hosts an All-Star Game.

"I'm glad the request seems reasonable," said County Commissioner Greg Hartmann. "I certainly support forwarding some extra money from next year to put an extra shine on the stadium."