Cold one for Bernie: Team picks up air conditioning tab
By DON WALKER
dwalker@journalsentinel.com
Seizing a public relations opportunity, the Milwaukee Brewers said
Monday that they would pay for the reconstruction of Bernie's Dugout,
giving Bernie Brewer a chance to cool off behind closed doors and avoiding
a debate on the use of taxpayer dollars to keep a mascot comfortable.
 Bernie
Brewer
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Photo/File |
Bernie
Brewer will keep his cool after all, and taxpayers won't have
to pay for his dugout upgrade.
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The $35,000 reconstruction of Bernie's Dugout, located in the
left-field area of Miller Park, will be done during the off-season and
will be ready in time for the home opener on April 4, team officials said.
The addition, which will be behind his dugout area, will include an air
conditioning unit donated by Trane.
"Bernie Brewer is an essential part of the entertainment experience at
Miller Park, and we care about his health and well-being," Ulice Payne
Jr., president and CEO of the Brewers, said in a prepared statement. "With
an enclosed stadium and our season covering the hottest days of summer, we
believe it's important to help ensure Bernie's ability to celebrate with
the fans."
Bernie couldn't be reached for comment but issued a rare statement,
given that he is a non-speaking mascot. "What great news! This is like an
early holiday gift and I am very excited that I will have a place to cool
down briefly on those really warm days so that I will be ready for lots of
back-to-back Brewers home runs and victory slides in 2003."
The Brewers keep Bernie's identity a closely held secret, but Bernie's
real-life father, Jerry from Waukesha, said Monday that he was happy for
his son. He said the warm weather was brutal for his son.
"It was bad news, especially if he had a couple of home runs right in a
row," his father said. "He has to slide down and then climb back up.
That's a lot of work, especially with the big shoes. So he has to be
careful. I was up there once, and it's bad news."
The Miller Park stadium district board had been divided on the prospect
of spending taxpayer money on Bernie. The district's finance board had
voted to delete the budget item from next year's construction budget, but
the district's construction board voted later to revisit the decision and
debate it among the full district board, which meets Thursday.
Frank Busalacchi, chairman of the board's construction committee and
secretary-treasurer of Teamsters Local 200, had argued in favor of Bernie,
saying it was a workplace safety issue to keep Bernie cool and happy.
Payne apparently agreed, but he also knew the Brewers didn't want to
make taxpayers angry.
"Taxpayers in the five-county area have done a great deal for the
Brewers and Miller Park," Payne said. "The Brewers will pay for the new
addition, and Bernie will be at full strength during future seasons at
Miller Park."
A version of this story appeared in the Milwaukee Journal
Sentinel on Nov. 19, 2002.
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