Albion approved for $40K grant towards new basketball courts at Bullard

Photo by Tom Rivers: A basketball hoop at Bullard Park manages to stand out in the snow in this photo from Feb. 6, 2021.

ALBION – The village has been approved for a $40,000 grant from the James and Juli Boeheim Foundation towards two new basketball courts at Bullard Park.

The Village Board announced on Wednesday the funding was approved and the board thanked resident Susan Oschmann and the Orleans County United Way for their efforts to secure the funding.

Oschmann has been coordinating 3-on-3 basketball tournaments to raise money for the new courts, and also recruited Roosevelt Bouie, a former Kendall basketball star who then had a Hall of Fame career at Syracuse playing for Coach Boeheim.

Bouie credited intense basketball games at Bullard when he was a kid for helping to develop him as a player. Bouie also worked during the summer at Bullard as a park supervisor. It was his first job.

“I owe quite a bit to Bullard park,” Bouie said in a previous interview. “It used to be the mecca of basketball.”

The United Way wrote the grant on behalf of Albion for the funding.

Village officials are eyeing the current skate park area for the new courts. The current basketball court hasn’t been upgraded in at least 30 years. The hoops and poles have been removed due to the poor condition of the court. A temporary hoop has been set up for the summer parks program in part of the parking lot.

There will be another 3-on-3 “Bounce for Bullard” tournament on Aug. 6. The cost is $20 per team. For more information contact Oschmann at susanoschmann@gmail.com for the registration form and rules.