As the area shrugs off its first snowfall, spring may seem far away, but Tamaqua School Board directors are thinking ahead to that first crack of a bat against a ball.

Blue Raider baseball players, and the teams they host, will be playing on an improved field. During a committee meeting Tuesday, the finance committee of the school board approved paying Tomlinson Bomberger Lawn Care & Landscape, Lancaster, $11,601 to repair the field."The field has drainage issues," said District Superintendent Carol Makuta. "It retains water even in dry weather."The finance committee also approved spending $17,899 for a 2003 Ford F450 plow truck. Makuta said that the truck is in great condition with less than 50,000 miles on the odometer. If purchased new, the truck would cost more than $60,000, she said.Both expenditures will be on the agenda for vote when the school board meets Tuesday, as well as a $10 per hour increase to the fee schedule for legal services with Sweet, Stevens, Katz and Williams LLP, Harrisburg."This group provides specialized legal counsel, and we have used them for special education advice, labor issues and human resource advice," Makuta said. "This is their first increase since 2009."The fee schedule for nonroutine services is $195 an hour; routine services are $150 an hour; and legal assistance services are $125 an hour.