Letter to the Editor: Support Turf for Blocksidge

To The Editor:

Several months ago, we were approached by some fellow Swampscott citizens and asked to co-chair a committee to raise private funds to support the development and construction of a multi-purpose turf field at Blocksidge that could be used by the football, lacrosse, soccer and field hockey programs in town.  If this private committee could raise $750,000, the town could bond, within its existing bond cap, $1.8 MM, and the field could be widened, lights could be installed, the stands could be rebuilt and we could build a new scoreboard.

When our son AJ graduates from high school in June, we will no longer have kids who participate in town recreation and school sports, so in some ways, this is not our issue.  But having spent many years dealing with the craziness that is and has been finding enough space and enough places for the kids in this town to play, we immediately said we would do it, and agreed to donate to the cause.

Swampscott is a great town.  We cannot imagine raising our children anywhere else.  But as everyone knows, this is also a very small town.  The mad scramble for field time that goes on early every fall and lasts well into the warm days of early summer is time consuming and ridiculous.  Finding field time when it’s not raining – or the fields aren’t trying to dry out from the rain – often becomes impossible.  Games get cancelled, practices get cancelled, and seasons get lost.

There’s a reason why so many towns are installing these fields.  They dry out almost immediately, they don’t need to “rest” and they can be used all day long with virtually no wear and tear.   This takes tremendous pressure off of the natural turf fields around town, and makes it possible for the DPW to focus on maintaining the natural turf fields.  In the end, towns end up with far more capacity than just one new field.  It doubles and triples their recreational space.

Our Committee has raised over $400,000 so far, and most of it has come from people who no longer have children participating in town sports.  Most of us are simply parents who see the possibilities for every child, and every field, associated with turfing and lighting Blocksidge Field.  And the town gets a $2.5 MM renovation for $1.8 MM.  We call that a pretty good deal.

Sincerely,

Lauren and Charlie Baker