Baseball district board will include industry names

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Gov. Tony Evers on Monday announced seven appointments to the Southeast Wisconsin Professional Baseball District board.

The appointees and incoming chairwoman will be part of the new 13-member board required by Acts 40 and 41, which will use half a billion dollars to repair American Family Field. The governor appointed industry professionals from labor unions and development groups, as well as names offered by the city of Milwaukee, Milwaukee County and the Brewers.

The Southeast Wisconsin Professional Baseball District owns most of American Family Field, which was completed in 2001. The board maintains and operates the park.

“The work to reach a deal to keep the Brewers in Wisconsin was a tremendous feat of bipartisan compromise and hard work, and I am grateful for all the partners that came together on this issue to help ensure future generations of sports fans can continue rooting for the home team in Milwaukee,” Evers, who signed the act in early December, said in a statement.

“I have confidence that this group of qualified individuals being appointed to the newly formed board today will carry on the tradition of excellence set by their predecessors. I look forward to their efforts to see the continued success of American Family Field and the Brewers for years to come,” the governor added.

Act 40 requires the previous district board to be replaced with 13 new members, according to the governor’s office. Members will include: four people picked by the governor, including a chairperson; three people appointed by the Wisconsin State Assembly speaker, three people appointed by the majority leader of the Wisconsin State Senate; one person appointed by the governor through a list provided by the Brewers, the city of Milwaukee and Milwaukee County.

All board members will serve four-year terms except for the initial term for the chairperson, as well as one initial appointment from the governor, senate majority leader and speaker, shall be for two years, according to the governor’s office.

Here are the gubernatorial appointees for the district board.

• Chairperson Jenni Dye, office of the governor; term expires January 2026
• Andrew Disch, North Central States Regional Council of Carpenters; term expires January 2026
• John Zapfel, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers; term expires January 2028
• Corey Gall, Wisconsin Pipe Trades Association; term expires January 2028
• Kevin Newell, Royal Capital Group; appointment selected from a list offered by Milwaukee County, term expires January 2028
• Preston Cole, the administrative director for the city of Milwaukee; appointment selected from a list offered by the city, term expires January 2028
• Michael Cantor, Sterling Project Development; appointment selected from a list offered by the Milwaukee Brewers, term expires January 2028