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; Build it and they will come, hopes Hall of Fame Courses _ Your Aaxkin‘ headguarters . Accessories 10 Wyman Rd., Unit 4, Waterloo _ 746â€"2650 of Fame, has fallen in love The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame is building its own Field of Dreams in the heart of rural Ontario: Part two in a special series on Canada‘s baseball heritage The married father of three who has moved his family around 10 times over the past 13 years while he‘s been a major league scout, fell in love with St. Marys and the hall of fame itself, the moment he arrived. "This time we built a house and we are staying," he jokes. "This is the project of a lifetime." St. Marys acquired the rights to become home to of Fame in the midâ€"1990s after a lengthy bidding process in which the comâ€" munity competed against the merits of 11 other southâ€" western Ontario communiâ€" ties. But a sense of baseball history â€" which began in 1838 with St. Marys‘ own Dr. Adam E. Ford and his early account of the game being published in Sporting Life magazine â€" was what hall of the Canadian Baseball Hall Memoribilia, including an old pitching machine, are at the hall g AINBOAN SPOr Jana Mirrer Special to the Chronicle lom Valcke, the execuâ€" tive director of the Canadian Baseball Hall Pyâ€"tying & fishing supplies fame officials were looking for when selecting a new site. The Blue Circle Field behind the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame has been built to Major League Baseball specifications with the hope that Canada‘s National baseball team will train there. The hall also hopes that Canada‘s own version of a Field of Dreams set in rural Ontario draws more visitors to the St. Mary‘s shrine to Canada‘s baseball heritage. Add that to an already beautiful community and it was a recipe for success. On June 4, 1998, the hall of fame officially opened its doors in smallâ€"town Ontario. But, while the collection of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame grows larger with every passing baseball season, what hasn‘t changed is the fact that 160 years of ‘ baseball is curâ€" cra m m e d into a 160â€" y e arâ€" o1 d stone farmâ€" house _ with gingerbread trim, on a prime 32â€"acre site. "We really only have room to display about 20 to 25 per cent of the things that we have. The rest is locked away in vaults," says Valcke. "We try to alternate the disâ€" plays every so often." But over the next three to five years, all of that will change, he says, provided the Canadian government and several large corporaâ€" SPORTS The All New 2002 Jaquar .. Type Has arrived and is available for test driving now. Call for an appointment 26 Manitou Drive, Kitchener PHONE (519) 894â€"2050 _ TOLL FREE 1â€"800â€"287â€"2844 SERVING KW & AREA FOR OVER 30 YEARS K.W., GUELPH, BRANTFORD & STRATFORD EXCLUSIVE JAGUAR FRANCHISE tions are prepared to put their money where homeâ€" plate is. Valcke and his staff plan to turn what was once a 32â€"acre abandoned gravel pit into Canada‘s Field of With the construction of major league size baseball diamond already in place, Valcke is now working on plans to put a 3 0 , 0 0 0 squareâ€"foot x clubhouse in a> place behind homeâ€"plate, which _ will house the hall of fame. Next to it, a 200 bed dormitory overâ€" looking the limestone quarâ€" ry below where most of St. Marys goes to cool of in the summer. Two other baseball diaâ€" monds â€" one with a backâ€" drop second to none in Canada â€" are also nearing completion. "We have two hotels in this town and they are booked solid every year with (Stratford) festival people," says Valcke. "We need to be Displays include mementos of Canada‘s pro baseball teams. JANA MILLER PHOTOS * _ _ESCora Mosaâ€"Fri 10â€"8; Uiscuvery Never Ends 946; 14 181 Eing St. 8, Waterien "*_* "" * The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame is tucked away at the end of Church Street in St. Marys. The facility is open daily until midâ€" October from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., _ but _ is _ closed Wednesdays. Admission is $4 for adults, $2 for students and $10 per family. Tours are available by calling (519)â€" able to offer people a place to stay and some banquet and conference rooms to really capitalize on the potential of the site and the worthiness of the hall of fame itself." With the current hall of fame building to be turned into a library and resource centre about Canadian conâ€" tributions to baseball, the entire site will be drawn together by a large bandâ€" shell, a oneâ€"millionâ€"galion pond and walking trails throughout. . "We‘re calling it Canada‘s Field of Dreams Project. Our aim is to begin having Canada‘s national baseball team training here and just to get our message out there that we are here and worth seeing," says Valcke. 7 DAYS A WEEK BEER STORE