By Khalida Sarwari
Saratoga High School officials this month announced plans for a major overhaul of the school’s athletic facilities, an undertaking estimated to cost $4.9 million for construction slated to start as soon as this summer.
The renovation is anticipated to be completed in two phases over the next year and a half and consists of replacing the grass fields at the stadium with artificial turf for baseball and softball as well as the expanded multi-purpose field for soccer, lacrosse, field hockey and football. The fields, which are about a decade old, are also used for the marching band, physical education classes and community events.
According to school principal Paul Robinson, by replacing the grass with artificial turf, the school will reap an annual savings of anywhere from $80,000 to $100,000 in maintenance costs. That money will be used to cover most, if not all, of the costs of renovating the fields 15 to 20 years from now.
An additional bonus, said Robinson, is that artificial turf drains better than a grass field and will eliminate weather-related downtime or delays during games.
“It could rain at 10 in the morning and by 2 p.m. you could be on the field and there wouldn’t be issues with slipping and sliding,” he said. “On the baseball and softball fields, our teams would miss a minimum amount of time in a rainout.”
The plan also involves constructing a sports plaza at the stadium entry that includes a ticket office, a concession stand, restrooms and a team room. The school has hired San Mateo-based firm Bartos Architecture for the job.
The effort to raise nearly $5 million for the project is being led by the Saratoga High School Foundation, which launched a “Red Pride Capital” campaign in January. Thus far, more than 100 individual donors have committed $2.2 million to the cause.
Discussions about the renovation began in fall 2012, said Robinson. Some members of the foundation had expressed an interest in replacing the bathroom facility with a bigger one. There was also talk of installing a ticket booth and snack bar
The foundation began collecting donations immediately and garnered close to $600,000 by the end of the year.
The foundation is short $300,000 to complete phase 1, which is to start construction this summer and involves replacing the football field turf followed by the construction of the sports plaza. The field work is expected to be completed by Aug. 1, and construction of the plaza will likely end in December or January.
Phase 2, starting next summer, involves refurbishing the baseball, softball and multi-purpose fields. By doing the three fields together, the school will save up to $350,000 in construction costs, Robinson said. This phase is slated to be completed by the time school begins in 2014.
The Saratoga High School Foundation is hoping corporate sponsors, parents and community members will step up to help the campaign meet its goal of raising the remainder of the $4.9 million for the project. The school will recognize all donors by building a “donor wall” of granite tiles, each bearing the name of an individual donor.
For more information about the campaign, visit the high school’s website at saratogahigh.org or contact Robinson at 408.867.3411. The school asks that contributions be sent to the Saratoga High School Foundation, 20300 Herriman Ave., Saratoga CA 95070.
