A proposal by school officials to spend $650,000 for replacement of the artificial turf at the Joplin High School baseball field is on the agenda for the 6 p.m. Tuesday R-8 Board of Education meeting.
The proposal that will be submitted to the board notes the artificial turf has been in place since 2014 and "has served the district well by allowing games to be played as scheduled, even in wet conditions," but adds that the turf has "experienced normal issues due to fiber degradation such as loss of infill and seam damage."
The proposal the board will act upon is from Mid America Sports Construction, the company that has done recent upgrades at Junge Field and the high school softball field.
The $39,000 in alternates that are being recommended by the officials include the following:
-A permanent concrete pitcher's mound- "The current portable mound has been damaged through normal use and repaired by our carpenters recently. It is also not solid footing as pitchers field their positions."
-A batter's eye in center field- "The houses on Indiana Street provide a difficult backdrop for hitters. It can be difficult to pick up the baseball as it is released by the pitcher due to the houses in the background." (A batter's eye is a solid, dark colored visual backdrop.)
The $689,000 would come from the district's capital outlay fund but would not include the cost of the batter's eye, according to the proposal.
"We will continue to look for other funding sources for the construction of the batter's eye."
The baseball field expenditures are not the only athletic department projects the board will consider Tuesday.
The other proposal calls for resurfacing of the JHS tennis courts, recaulking around the perimeter, replacement of the nets and post caps at a cost of $73,948.52.
12 comments:
Buy a new riding mower and plant grass seed.
I have a question. What happens to old turf? Is it recyclable, or does it end up in the landfill? Does it create pollution in the manufacturing or emit any harmful chemicals? I really don’t know these things, so I hope someone can provide answers. If it is harmful, I agree. Get a mower and some seed.
This should help improve the student performance on the most important testing criteria...athletic wins and losses!
Is it possible to look for corporate supporters? Like Mercy or Freeman or Downstream and they can place their logo on the field? Yearly my taxes under Joplin R-8 always increase.
Grass seed, goats, & FFA.
9 year lifespan seems extremely short. Was it not maintained as it should have been? Is the girls softball field next? Soccer field?
Artificial turf can last up to 10 years!
So this large expense won't happen again until there new people in charge to blame.
Girls softball was replaced already. The piles of old turf were piled up in between the fields earlier this spring.
Don’t know what happened to the old turf but usually people fight over it to put it in the own backyard batting cages (baseball or softball) small putting ranges in the backyards or pitching mounds. Better question would be did the district sell off the old turf and does it plan to sell off the old turf? Or does it go for free to first come, first serve?
Also, where does the funds go for all the outside rentals of the baseball and softball fields? The are lots of college and area high school teams that have paid to use the venues and those revenues over the past 10 years could have been sat aside to help pay for the replacement costs.
One reason Landis wanted back on the school board so he could get free access to the baseball and softball fields for his brothers tournament business and his their travel ball program.
If you want to keep nice things, they must be maintained. 10 years is the average life of turf. Yes it is a big price tag. But guess what? Divide that number by 10, now believe it or not, that number is smaller than the annual cost of maintaining a grass field/ including the groundskeepers salaries.
And to 9:52 You really need a bit of evidence before you make absurd claims. Did Mr. Landis tell this to you?
I am a Supporter of Athletics in Schools - - I Played and Lettered in Grade School and High School Sports and played on Grass Fields - which were not always in the best shape, but got the job done. I do understand that Playing Sports does help students build leadership, teamwork, camaraderie, and hopefully a healthy lifestyle - but is the American Education System spending to much Time and Money to Support, Create, and Sell Athletics / Sports??? With about 55% of the High School Students participating in Sports - - what are we doing for the other 45% of Students Not in Sports -
The Sad Truth is with all the Hype of High School and College Sports less than 3% go on to play College Sports and less than 2% go on to play or participate in professional Athletes.
We must be preparing and focusing our Kids Education for life after High School and College - to face all the demands of the 21st century - - because the Truth is 98% of all the Kids that played High School and College Sports will be sitting at Home on Sunday - Arm Chair Quarterbacking - trying to relive their Glory Days...
The U.S. ranks near the bottom in a survey of students' math skills in 30 industrialized countries and many Americans are in denial. The same survey showed that one-third believed their own schools were excellent, but only one-sixth believed the same of other schools.
The United States isn't investing as much in human capital as other developed countries and its comparative advantage is falling behind as a result. U.S. students' math skills have remained stagnant for decades. The country is falling behind many others which have greatly improved, such as Japan, Poland, and Ireland. U.S. test scores are below the global average.
So we must look at a compromise -- Should we Invest in More Sports or Education in our Schools - what are our Society's Proprieties - "Can Dick and Jane Read" or throw or hit a Ball - - which will benefit them in the Long Run - - -
Why can't we have nice things?
Look at all the complaining.
Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning?
It amazes me that so many out of town teams play on this field. The money spent on athletics is outrageous and pisses this taxpayer off. The campus is absolutely the ugliest large campus in the state. I just love seeing shot putters on the corner of 20th and Indiana. I am totally disgusted.
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