Photoby Cyrus Polk – Sparkle Films.
The Laguna Beach High School field will close beginning May 16 to public and student use even before the school year ends to allow for a $2 million field renovation.
“The field is at the end of its useful life,” said school district Facilities Director Jeffrey Dixon. He recommended replacing the current field with a new surface that stays cooler and allows for better drainage. The impact-absorbing shock pad, developed by Brock, of Boulder, Colo., to improve player safety, is installed between the artificial turf and ground rock and is guaranteed for a 25-year lifespan, Dixon said. “This is the latest and greatest,” he said.
The nearly three-month closure will likely force the relocation of some youth summer camps that use the field for soccer and football training. Other changes to the school’s baseball diamond are expected at a later time.
The Breakers spring and summer football practice will relocate to Thurston Middle School, said head football coach John Shanahan.
The field’s natural surface and turf was replaced in 2004 using recycled rubber tires consisting of tiny black granules known as crumb-rubber. The potential health impact of synthetic turf is under study by the state Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment.
The new track and field will not be made of crumb-rubber. It will be a combination of the natural mineral Zeolite and sand, an organic material that maintains a cooler temperature, said Dixon. “We looked at a variety of materials to replace the field with; this is not a corner we are willing to cut,” he said.
Though the health impact of exposure to crumb-rubber is as yet incomplete, the surface gets hot and can contribute to dehydration in athletes, Dixon said. Moreover, it is illegal to allow crumb rubber to enter storm drains, he said.
Coconut husks were considered as an organic infill alternative, but ultimately rejected because of the potential for allergic reactions and its buoyancy, possibly choking storm drains during rains, Dixon said. While natural turf would be preferred, sod would also require a closure and would be difficult to sustain under current water restrictions, he said.
Grading around the field is needed to reconstruct drains and prevent future field flooding, Dixon said.
On the track, two 100-meter lanes will be added to allow for an alternative start location that is better protected from prevailing winds that affect runner times. A new scoreboard will be installed as well during the construction. One portion of the contract, $780,000 for field demolition, utilities and the scoreboard, was approved during a school board meeting last month. The contract went to Byrom-Davey, Inc., of San Diego, which specializes in building sports facilities.
Notices to alert recreational users of the closure were to be posted this week. The baseball field will remain open during most of the field re-construction.
Girls track coach Steve Lalim said he will not miss black crumb-rubber that spills from his shoes and socks each night after practice. “It feels good that we have the support to take care of our kids,” he said. “The new track will create more excitement,” he predicted.
WOW…. Two MILLION for a football field “make-over”…??? Beats the pants off the budget for the facilities for homeless in Laguna Beach as well as the city budget for safe streets.
Guess a better football field will lead to less deaths on PCH and the Canyon and a multitude of warm beds for those less fortunate.
While the majority of homeless have not grown up in Laguna Beach themselves, the budget for Laguna Beach school district does reflect a concern for the health and wellfair of it’s younger citizens.
The Incorporated City of Laguna Beach does shoulder some the responsibility for the less fortunate to set an virtuous example, but I agree so much more can be done, and if you look closely at the community of young residents that reside within our town, you might possibly see those people who will make the changes nessisary to resolve the homeless problem.
As for the safety of Laguna Canyon Rd.
There are alternative routes and insurance companies should give discounts to those individuals that avoid the Canyon road.
Or contribute to it’s safety through the money recieved from excessive anual mileage report fees by those that avoid it.
Too many people have suffered from the loss of loved ones traveling upon Laguna Canyon road and El Toro road for it not to be a concern.
Growing up in Laguna it is common knowledge not to ride a bicycle upon Coast Hwy. , but out of ignorance or defiance many still do.
There is a long history of communication and a lack of compromise between The City of Laguna Beach and the State of California agency CALTRANS and this is where most of the problems with the coast and canyon routes lie.
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