Community fields get a makeover

As students take a break from school for the summer, officials are taking the opportunity to revamp school facilities. While repainting, updating carpets and adjusting lighting are part of routine maintenance, this summer in particular holds something larger: the community fields project.

Formally discussed at the start of the new year, the community fields project looks to renovate the junior high’s football field and the high school’s varsity baseball field.

“There has been a growing need for more space or the ability to maximize the use of the facilities we have,” said Shanda Williams, director of parks and recreation. Councilman Billy Pritchard agreed, saying the city wanted to get better “utilization of what [the city] had.” 

Williams and Pritchard attended previous fields meetings, as did other members of city council, parks and recreation, Mountain Brook Athletics and Lacrosse, the Board of Education, local architects and individuals who are familiar with the history of the fields and representatives of contractor Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood.

Because there is a limited amount of space within city limits that could be utilized for recreational field purposes, officials decided to instead look at renovating existing fields and creating viable options for multi-use fields. “It costs more money to do it, but on the other hand, if you could ever find additional space … it would be multiples of what we would spend here [on the renovations],” Pritchard said. 

MBJH football field

The junior high football field is one of the more heavily trafficked spaces in Mountain Brook and was last redone about 20 years ago, Pritchard said. It’s used for gym classes, the junior high football team, Mountain Brook Athletics football practice and lacrosse practice. And over the years, having thousands of feet running across the surface the grass and topsoil has been compacted immensely.

To create a better playing surface, Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood drafted a plan that would renovate the field. Construction began mid-June.

Workers will remove about 60,000 square feet of old surface material, which includes the existing grass, and laser grade the field surface. When tested before construction, the drainage and permeability rate of the field was 0.2 inches per hour, which is significantly slower than the drainage rate on a newer field of eight to 15 inches per hour.

To remedy this, about four inches of coarse sand will be tilled into the top six inches of the soil profile before high-end sod is placed on top to take root. According to GMC, a sodded athletic field will take better abuse if maintained correctly and will be able to handle heavy traffic. Williams said too that these updates will help reduce the number of rainouts associated with the field.

John Bricken, Vice President of landscape, planning and architecture with GMC said the field will gain a new irrigation system, too. He also confirmed that construction started on the field on June 7 and the completion date is estimated to be mid-July, weather permitting. This will give the new sod enough time to take root into the fields before welcoming athletes. 

As decided at City Council on May 22, the city will pay $168,699 for the improvements and will be reimbursed $56,232 by the Board of Education; $28,117 by Mountain Brook Lacrosse; and $28,117 by Mountain Brook Athletics.

“It’s a significant project, but it’s not as big as the one at the high school,” Pritchard said.

MBHS baseball field

While the process is similar to that of the junior high field, the baseball field takes its renovations one step beyond adding an improved drainage system to the field. Once the drainage has been updated and the field laser-graded, Bricken said GMC will install a new pitcher’s mound and an artificial turf surface to the field.

The improved fields, along with the availability of lights, parking and bathrooms made the varsity baseball field a good fit for these renovations because it will allow many teams to practice on it without diminishing the quality of the field. MBA football will be able to use the field in the fall and MBHS baseball will have full use of the field in the spring, without any conflicts. 

“MBA being able to use the varsity baseball field during the school’s off-season will greatly benefit their organization,” Williams said. Pritchard said too that the multi-purpose use of the fields gives more of an opportunity for the addition of youth programs that are being considered and that the turf field should have a long life. 

Adding turf to the field will also improve the drainage. “We’re cutting out about six to seven inches or more of existing soil and hauling it off and bringing in that porous stone base,” said Bricken. “[In that porous stone base,] water can travel quickly to collector drains to exit water.”

All of this will help reduce the number of rainouts as well as reduce maintenance costs, Williams added. “Artificial turf is not completely maintenance free, but it will reduce some of the time and money spent on regular maintenance such as cutting grass and fertilizers,” she said. 

While there will be permanent markings for the baseball team, with “Spartans” behind home plate and the letters “MB” emblazoned near first and third base, there will not be permanent lines on the field for football or other sports.

As of press time, construction on the baseball field had not yet begun and Bricken said they were waiting to process all contracts. But once construction starts he estimated 10-12 weeks before completion. “Ten [weeks] on the fastest, 12 [weeks] on the slowest,” he said.

The city also finalized payments for this project at City Council on May 22. The city will pay $796,722.77 on behalf of the Board of Education and will be reimbursed $210,000 from Mountain Brook Athletics over six equal payments and $275,000 from Mountain Brook Sports Corporation over six equal payments. The Board of Education and the city also agreed to a lease /use agreement, under which the field will be available for community athletic purposes. 

“[With these renovations,] we hope to provide better playing surface for the sports programs, both community-based and school-sponsored,” Williams said.