On Thursday evening at 7 p.m., the SP School Board will hear and address concerns that have recently come up regarding the proposed alignment of the new turf field at the SPHS High School.  These concerns affect all soccer players that may use the field in the future.

The school district's proposed plan attempts to center the field on the stadium press box and places the field as far north as possible.  Unfortunately, this results in the northern corners of the soccer field being squeezed against the new track, with very little room between the field and the track at these locations.

An alternative would be to center the field on the track, which would increase the playable area and create the greatest amount of out-of-bounds area at all four corners.

We are concerned that the proposed alignment creates the following potential problems:
 
1. No room for corner kicks, so that players will have to start their kick from the track surface (with the risk of slipping in soccer cleats) and complete the kick on the field surface, and

2. On plays near the either of the two northern corners, the track surface will be immediately adjacent to the touch line so that a player running toward the corner/touch line will have no room to slow down before hitting the slick track surface. 

We are concerned about the safety (sprained and broken ankles, ACL tears, facial lacerations, etc.) of this alignment as well as the playability of the field as proposed.

If you agree with these concerns regarding these issues, please:

1. Attend the School Board meeting on Thursday night at 7:00 p.m. at the District Boardroom and express your concerns; or

2. Sign the Petition at the link below, which will be delivered to the Board on Thursday evening; or

3. Do both.

Thanks for your help.

Mike Thurman

SPHS Turf Field Alignment Petition 
            
http://www.petitiononline.com/12369874/petition.html