HS Football Field Knee-Deep in Mud; School Officials Seek Solutions

It's not the same as getting that artificial turf field, but it should at least help the situation at .

Peabody School Business Manager Dave Keniston says it will cost the district $15,000-$20,000 to repair areas of the high school football field where sod has eroded, creating muddy conditions, holes and potential hazard to the athletes.

The estimate includes using a soil mix that would help to dry out the field but not address a complete revamp of its drainage system.

Athletic Director Phil Sheridan has argued that the best long-term solution is an artificial turf field. That could cost around $1 million, however, although the district is looking at .

Keniston told School Committee members last week that the temporary solution -- filling in with the soil mix -- is recommended for the spring since winter is approaching and the project is currently unfunded and not in the budget. Keniston said there will be a proposal to include this in the FY12 budget.

He noted that both Beverly and Danvers have used the soil mix with success.

School Committee member Beverly Dunne didn’t think enough stones were turned in order to come up with a more viable solution and reminded members that there is liability and potential harm to students who play on the field under less than ideal conditions.

“We are lucky there have been no injuries to date…it’s like walking on a polo field and I do not know how anyone on the football team has yet to break an ankle,” said Dunne.

She said this issue has been “festering” for 36 years and asked if Keniston could prepare an analysis that would include perhaps inviting a turf specialist to the Building & Grounds Subcommittee to discuss pricing and options to compare with the alternative mentioned by Keniston.

“The girls’ soccer team is No. 10 in the nation and No. 1 in the state of Massachusetts. We should honor their achievement by making sure the fields are up to standards worthy of such an achievement,” said Dunne.

“I’d like to add to this analysis how many times we have had to move games to and how much it costs us,” School Committee member Tom Rossignoll said.

And Ed Charest added that there were a lot of games that had to be postponed because of the conditions at Coley Lee Field -- for the future benefit of Peabody’s young athletes, there needs to be serious improvement. He cited Swampscott High School’s investment of $2.5 million into its football field as a sign of such commitment.

“We haven’t done this…for the future of our athletes, scouts from the colleges will be looking at what they are playing on,” said Charest. “…not playing on an artificial field leaves students at a disadvantage, although they have adopted well to the conditions at hand.”