Norwich — There will be a new look at the Thomas J. Dodd Memorial Stadium this summer that will make it easier to see for both players and fans of the Connecticut Tigers minor league baseball team.

New LED stadium lights were installed Friday, replacing the 25-year-old obsolete original stadium lights that no longer met major and minor league baseball standards for professional teams. Wiring through the existing light poles will be done next week, so the lights can’t be tested yet.

The new lights will greatly improve lighting on the field, while reducing so-called “light spillage” and glare for fans watching the games, said Dale Koppen, senior project manager for Musco Lighting, based in Oskaloosa, Iowa. Koppen said new LED lights are “the modern way to go,” and the company is doing hundreds of similar projects across the country, including for the Baltimore Orioles' and Texas Rangers' Major League Baseball stadiums and the Baltimore Ravens’ National Football League stadium.

The Norwich firm, Prime Electric, located in the business park not far from the stadium, installed the new lights Friday.

“It’s energy-efficient, and you can do a light show,” Koppen said.

Both those features have Connecticut Tigers’ general manager Dave Schermerhorn excited. The Tigers hope to greatly cut their utilities bill with the new lights. And when the Tigers do something great on the field, the computer-controlled lights can be made to flicker like a strobe light or blink in succession — like a light version of the wave.

The Norwich City Council approved funding for the new lights as part of an $800,000 bond package for much-needed improvements to the 25-year-old, city-owned stadium. Along with the lights, the package includes replacing the failing heating and ventilation system for the team clubhouses and extending protective backstop netting along the first and third base lines.

The funding was secured in April 2018, but Norwich city officials waited to do the work until the city and the Connecticut Tigers agreed to a new lease that will keep the team in Norwich for years to come. The City Council approved the new 10-year lease with two five-year team extension options on April 15 of this year.

The lease is not yet signed, however, as attorneys for both parties have revised legal language and what city officials called minor issues. City Manager John Salomone said Friday the lease is expected to be finalized early next week.

City officials gave the go-ahead to replace the lights once the lease was approved to ensure they would be in place for the start of the Tigers’ home season on June 16. Salomone said the city wanted to wait for the lease to be signed before starting the ventilation system replacement and the new protective netting.

Mayor Peter Nystrom said he agreed with moving ahead with the lighting replacement first and was pleased that they were installed on Friday.

“Since we’re still in the month of May, I’m very pleased to know that they will be in place for opening night,” Nystrom said of the new lights. “It’s very important that we have our stadium in compliance with Major League Baseball standards. My next concern is the backstop and extending the netting.”

c.bessette@theday.com