MIDDLEBORO — Their latest project will be a big hit with town athletes, Park Department Superintendent Francis J. Cass said.

A wooded lot in the area of 167 Wood Street is being converted into the town’s first new Little League field in nearly 30 years.

The field will provide more opportunities for both practice and game time, which Cass said fills a valuable need as the town’s population expands. 

Two fields are planned for the location, one a regulation sized Little League field and the other slightly smaller.

The lot has been vacant since about the late 1970s, when the site was taken by the town for non-payment of taxes by the previous owner. 

A few years ago, the town eyed the site for the new police station. When a different Wood Street location was eventually selected for the station, Cass said he wanted to move quickly to secure the site for fields.

“I thought it was a race to beat housing, to be honest,’’ he said.

The need for fields has been long-standing, he said. The town spent about $64,000 in the 1990s and $25,000 in 2015 for studies on the need for athletic outlets, Cass said, but “we haven’t built a field.’’ 

An allotment of $105,000 from Community Preservation funds was designated for the new fields. Community Preservation Act funds are used to acquire, create, preserve, rehabilitate, or support projects related to open space, recreation, community housing, or historic preservation. They are funded through a surcharge on taxes. 

When the field project is completed, Cass said the town will be “pretty close’’ to meeting that budget.

The fields will be easily accessible, which Cass described as a major asset. “What’s great about this site is it’s centered in town. It’s within one mile of every school and playground.’’

Before the project began, engineering plans were drawn up, Cass said. After approval from the Conservation Commission, more than 100 trees were removed by Parks Department employees, including summer recreation staff, with support from the Highway Department.

Cass is now securing a tree removal company to take down trees that are close to the street or nearby homes. Work is also being done to set loam and ensure proper drainage, he said.

Cass is especially proud of plans to construct a 13-foot wide walking track on the perimeter of the property. This quarter-mile track will be shaded by several maple and oak trees that will remain on the land. 

“I don’t know many tracks that are shaded,’’ he said, which will provide a benefit in warmer weather. The track will be built using stone dust rather than pavement and can be maintained with a machine the department already owns. 

The goal is “to get people off the sidewalks’’ by providing “a safe place to walk and run. We’re really proud of that.’’

He hopes the fields will be available by the fall to enhance opportunities for area youth.

“This helps foster kids playing on the same community team,’’ he said.