NEW BERLIN – Mayor Terry Potter says New Berlin will complete the sale of public baseball fields to a private prep school this summer, and the village will net new fields thanks to a corporate donation.

Nearly two years of negotiations have seen Milford Academy trying to buy the 10 acres of village land, called Fish Field, for about $4,600 an acre.

The land is located just behind Milford’s main building (the former New Berlin High School) and was to be developed into a home field for the Milford Falcons football team, according to plans discussed by Director Bill Chaplick in 2009.

The initial agreement would have required the academy to allow the Unadilla Valley Youth Baseball and Softball Association to use Fish Field until March 2012, when alternative fields currently under construction by the village could then accommodate the players.

Potter said the issue of mandating the use of the property for the Little League was the primary factor in Milford walking away from the deal earlier this year. Chaplick also said the amount of time in getting an agreement together had eroded the school’s interest.

However, Potter reported recently that the school and the village are again negotiating an agreement to sell the property to Milford in July. Trustee Robert Starr explained the terms and price of the original agreement are still intact, except for the condition of providing use of the fields to the Little League.