Schools

School Board Examining Idea of Turf Field

Merrimack High School athletic field needs replacing and a synthetic playing surface could be the way to go.

Turf, or no turf, that is the question the school board is trying to answer as it reviews how to proceed with a much-needed overhaul of Merrimack High School's athletic field.

Consensus among the School Board members on Monday night was favorable for installing a turf field within the next few years, but that they needed more information in terms of cost of installation and upkeep before they could pursue it any further.

The board met with Planning and Building Committee Chairman Rich Hendricks and committee members Finlay Rothhaus and Davis Powell to discuss the committee's findings from a charge to examine the track and athletic field at the high school and the best options for improving them.

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According to the committee, the condition of the field makes it impossible for the high school to play full seasons' worth of games there. The soccer teams only played a third of their home games at the school, the rest were played off campus. The lacrosse and football teams play all of their home games there. However in order to ensure it's usable for game days, teams do not practice on the field, which can cause a lot of damage, Hendricks said.

In performing their study, the committee spoke with schools like Bedford, Nashua and Exeter, among several others, who all have synthetic turf fields. Those fields have proven to be a positive investment, according to Hendricks.

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"One of the athletic directors said once you have [a turf field] you will wonder how you ever got by without one," Hendricks said.

Athletic Director Andy Krahling, the committee members and the school board all spoke favorably about installing turf, but they know there are some negatives, a big one being cost.

Hendricks said the cost of installing a turf field was around $800,000 to $900,000 to install and that was few years ago. Factor in that the track will likely need replacing at the same time, that pushes the project up over $1 million, School Board member George Markwell said. Markwell is the board representative to the planning and building committee.

Further, it will require the purchase of different equipment to maintain it since lawnmowers and other traditional maintenance devices would be inappropriate. Hendricks said one of the great things about a turf field is that you can even plow it should a late fall or early spring snow fall during the outdoor sports seasons.

"I think the biggest pill to swallow is going to be the up-front cost of it,” School Board Chairman Jody Vaillancourt said.

That said, Vaillancourt and the other four members of the board said they couldn't make a decision as to whether a turf field would be their recommendation in terms of proceeding until they have some more definitive costs.

Hendricks said they didn't tack down solid projected numbers since they were under the impression this was to be a very preliminary report. Vaillancourt said they can't proceed without a better idea of upfront and ongoing expenses.

There are other elements to look into as well, that could affect the price of the field in a positive way. Consideration of field sponsorships from high school-appropriate sponsors or grant money – like the NFL grant that helped pay for Stellos Stadium in Nashua – could be ways to defray the cost of an overhaul.

Sharing the cost with a program like the Merrimack Youth Association was another idea bandied about during Monday night's discussion.

Krahling said without a shadow of a doubt a turf field would be a game changer in town and teams would be lining up to use it.

"I think it would be a huge community resource ... that field would get used from 2:30-10:30 every night," Krahling said.

The committee members said a replacement of the field at the high school, if it is to be fully utilized, is a project that should be completed sooner rather than later. The current field requires a lot of maintenance for not a lot of use.

Further, the track, which is being repaired at a cost of $2,500 to $3,000 a year, should be replaced within the next five years, as it will be nearing the end of its life expectancy, Hendricks said. Markwell opined that it would make the most sense to replace the two at the same time because the track would likely take some damage in the process of any significant work to the field.

Vaillancourt asked the committee to go back and get some more concrete numbers from the peer schools they spoke with as well as turf professionals to get a better picture at potential costs both for implementation and up keep. The board was also interested if any of the schools are using the fields as an income generator by renting them to other organizations.

"Really I think that this is a great starting point," board member Shannon Barnes said.


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