Athletes To Enjoy Turf Fields Project Will Be Completed By Fall ’09
By Noor Haboosh ’10
News Staff Reporter
The Development Office is finalizing plans for the construction of a new turf fields behind the Athletic Center in the fall of 2009. The new turf fields will be one of many buildings and grounds projects that have unfolded in the past few years. For example, the Wall Family Fitness Center and the Remsen Hockey Arena were renovated. The school recently celebrated its first home track meet on the newly constructed track. The new dorms, as yet named, will be ready for occupancy by fourth formers this fall. “You can see it as a recent trend, starting with the track last year, the new dorms this year, and in a few years, these fields,” says Chief Financial Officer Richard Saltz.
Generous donations have made the new turf field a reality. Though the specific donors cannot be disclosed, Executive Director of Development and Alumni Relations Dan Courcey elaborates: “The funding is coming primarily from a select number of generous donors. This group includes no more than ten to fifteen current and former parents and alumni.” The lead donor in the group has contributed $ 1.5 million, and the donations total $ 2.4 to 2.5 million, a sum that entirely covers the cost of building the new fields.
Though the details have not yet been finalized, Mr. Saltz says, “We are currently in contact with Strategic Building Systems (SBS). They’re in the process of writing requests for qualified architects. Once we get these back, we can figure out who we want to hire for construction. We’re really at the beginning stage at this point.”
The Development Office, in coordination with the Athletic Department, has been planning the project for four to five years. “The funding was actually secured eight months to one year ago, and the lead donor has a history of supporting athletic projects at Choate,” explains Mr. Courcey. The turf fields will represent Choate’s dedication to athletics. “Supporting Choate in this way is really a compelling funding opportunity,” he says. “It just makes a lot of sense for the community.”
The addition of two large turf fields will change life at Choate for some. Currently, heavy rainfall can cause home games to be postponed and cancelled. Teams that practice on the outdoor fields are never allowed to host games indoors. Practices are sometimes cancelled as well to protect players from injury and the grass from uprooting. Coaches worry about field surface conditions for games. Though varsity teams may be able to secure indoor practices in bad weather, JV and thirds teams are sometimes left with nowhere to play. On the new fields, athletic teams will have the opportunity to continue playing in safe conditions.
This project consists of two lacrosse fields joined lengthwise and will feature stadium seating and lighting systems. The fields will have electronic technology that allows use for multiple sports, because the boundaries and field features can change. There will be no more spray painting of field lines. “What’s attractive about this field is that we can now host home games under the lights at night,” says Mr. Courcey. “It really contributes to the school spirit aspect of Choate athletics. This synthetic surface will be ideal for our field hockey and lacrosse teams. We can also extend use to the football and soccer teams if applicable.”
The community integration aspect is a key aspect in this project. As Mr. Courcey explains, “We are used to a Wednesday/Saturday rotation for our games. The problem with this is if you have friends on other teams, you can never really go and watch them play. However, with the turf, we can focus on one sport on a given day when no one else is playing a game. It’s a great project for the athletes, friends, and members of the community.” Choate hosted the football game against Kent under the lights, which, according to Mr. Courcey, “was a huge home run and a wonderful thing for the community.” The turf fields will provide more opportunities for such games.
A great deal of discussion preceded the decision to take on the project. The location of the new fields was heavily debated. Some suggested putting the field in front of the Winter X, or in the place of the Girls’ Varsity Soccer field. However, as Mr. Courcey explained, that was arguably the worst possible location for the field. “The cost in using the soccer field would definitely have amounted to more than $2.4 million, as we would have to deal primarily with water issues. The field floods easily, and we would have to create an alternative form of water flow. In addition, the lights would cause problems with community relations. We also didn’t want to replace the Varsity Field Hockey Field, as that is currently our best natural surface.” The current decision proved to be the “path of least resistance.” Mr. Courcey states: “If there’s anything controversial about the project, it concerns whether we should use natural or synthetic material for the surface. We are doing research on both options and are visiting schools like Taft, which has such a [synthetic] surface.”
“They [the athletic office] had been waiting for the new track for thirty years, and has been involved in the planning of these field for about five years now, so it’s nice to finally have the project realized,” says Mr. Courcey. “We are not the first to do this. It is a standard field surface, and is currently used commonly at the university level. We are right in the middle of the pack in terms of timing on the project.”
“We hope to get it running by the fall of 2009,” said Mr. Saltz. “Hopefully, the fields will be ready for play in September of 2009 so that the Varsity Field Hockey team can be the first to crack it.”
PHOTO/contributedThis sketch shows the fields that will be located behind the WJAC.
