Main field closed in interest of safety following assessment

District leadership decided to close the main athletic field between Red Hook’s high and middle schools last week after an independent assessment requested by Athletic Director Tom Cassata showed it did not meet safety recommendations. 

Subsequently, the district’s insurance provider raised similar safety concerns following its annual audit of all facilities, the result of which was sent to the district Monday. 

The track surrounding the field remains open to use but signs around the perimeter of the field warn visitors to stay off the grass. The boys lacrosse home games scheduled for the field this spring season are being adjusted. 

District officials have openly discussed the need to repair the field for more than five years, including through three separate capital project proposals not favored by voters. A fourth proposition is on the ballot this May. 

Cassata requested the independent assessment several months ago in advance of the spring; he had observed the field’s condition worsen through the fall football season, and as a lacrosse field is nearly seven yards wider than a football field its sideline is located closer to the field’s surrounding drainage ditch. 

The assessment found the slope of the field exceeds the safety recommendations set forth by the National Federation of High School Associations, creating an increased risk for injury. The slope has become more severe over time. The district’s insurance provider likewise noted the drainage slope as a concern that will continue to degrade. Neither assessment required the district close the field. 

Keeping the field in safe, usable condition has been an ongoing effort for district staff and outside service contractors, who have regularly overseeded the field to grow fresh grass, aerated, evened out divots and tried to protect against pests that attack grass roots. However, decades of overuse and too little time for the field to recover between seasons have made maintenance increasingly more difficult and the crowned slope of the field has become progressively more severe. Outside experts enlisted by the district have said a rebuild to resurface and add drainage to the field is needed for any lasting remedy. 

The field was originally built in 1999. Most of the field, though not the grass surrounding the football field surface, was resodded in 2017. 

“That was a good fix for several years, until you kind of get back to where you are,” Cassata said. “It’s not for a lack of maintaining it. Our guys maintain it the best we can. We seed it, we fertilize it, we try to address the concerns as we can.” 

Read a timeline of the field's history and decline here.

Due to its overly dense and uneven surface, its propensity to flood, and its inaccessibility, the Board of Education has put forth renovation plans using artificial turf as ballot propositions three times since 2022; the proposed project on the ballot this May would install a grass surface. 

After the failed propositions, the Board of Education Facilities Committee has discussed short-term repairs to the field using district fund balance, which would allow the work to begin immediately but would not be eligible for state aid, leaving taxpayers responsible for paying the entire bill of roughly $500,000. As a full rebuild of the field is needed and nearly two-thirds of the cost of a capital project can be reimbursed by state aid, the Board decided to continue pursuing that route to reach a solution. 

“The most fiscally responsible (choice) is to move forward with a capital project,” Board member Kate Kortbus said at the Feb. 20 board meeting. “The grass rebuild would last longer than a quick repair for the amount of money we’d be spending out of our fund balance.”

Proposition 3 on the upcoming May 20 district budget and board election ballot asks voters if they will support a $6.085 million capital improvement project featuring broad reconstruction utilizing a grass surface, in addition to other renovations to the track and fencing, installation of field lighting and some interior improvements. After state aid, taxpayers would be responsible for less than $2.2 million. Visit the district’s voting webpage to learn more. 

Voters in October rejected a proposition to renovate the main field using an artificial turf surface, but approved the renovation of two other field spaces at the high and middle schools utilizing natural grass. While the main field is closed, the athletics teams and physical education classes will continue using the other field surfaces available at the schools. In order to preserve it, use of the main field has been limited to varsity football and lacrosse competitions, with most other practices and activities happening on other fields and spaces.