the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Dr. Fishbein presented the Ridgewood High School Stevens Field Synthetic Turf Replacement Proposal. The field is used seven days a week, during the school day for physical education, as well as by RHS athletics, youth sports, and adult community programs. Dr. Fishbein provided background on the field, explaining that Stevens Field was first completed during the 2009 referendum.
Synthetic turf fields can be used during inclement weather, and they prevent the overuse of our other grass fields. The field is heavily used and is beyond its expected life cycle. Twice a year, we conduct G Max testing to make sure the cushion is a playable surface, and the G Max levels in our most recent test were over 200 in 5 of the 10 spots that were tested. Without replacing the field, the district would have to close the field for health and safety reasons. Turf fields permit two times the use of natural grass and three times the use with lights. Additionally, turf reduces the time for required maintenance. Though there is a high initial cost, the maintenance cost of a turf field is much lower. Considering the high volume of usage of the field, synthetic turf better meets the needs of the district and the community. This project was approved by the Board.
What are they talking about that was just put in a few years ago. Rip the damn shit up. And put down sod. How many times are we going to spend $1 million on a field this is ridiculous.
Pay attention, Stevens is 9-10 years old and past it’s ability to be a safe playing field based in the industry accepted GMAX test. This is one of the most used fields in Ridgewood. It’s time.
And, if there is a health risk identified with synthetic turf, it will go back decades and across the world. This is a commonly used playing surface and has been since the 70s/80s. Get over your righteous self.
Follow the money
No one is arguing that we don’t need to replace the turf at Stevens. The issue is that we have chosen an inferior product from a firm fraught with law suits due to problems with the projected durability of the installed product. Why not use what was installed at Maple Field which by all accounts has been a success.