Artificial-turf fields are coming to Long Beach

The Long Beach Board of Education unanimously approved a proposal to install artificial-turf fields at the high school and middle school at the Sept. 18 board of ed. meeting.

“The entire board felt that turf is the way to go,” said trustee Dr. Dennis Ryan. “Now we just have to investigate the different types [of turf], pass that and move on.”

The board cited many advantages to synthetic grass, including the ability to play in all types of weather year-round, a lower cost of maintenance and that geese will flock elsewhere.

“The community certainly feels this way in terms of their articulated comments about the need for more space, more time, more games, less cancellations due to flooding or unsafe conditions,” Ryan said.

The installation of the fields will cost the district $6.2 million for both locations and include new press boxes and bleachers, according to Michael DeVito, chief operating officer at the district.

The project is part of a $98.9 million bond that the community voted to approve as a referendum last May, to finance for the first part of the district’s three-phase master plan to upgrade its aging facilities and programs. The fields are slated to be installed by 2012.

Turf fields, which are made of synthetic fibers and a rubber infill, have been installed in several schools throughout Nassau County, including the nearby Oceanside School District. Overall, 14 of the 57 high schools in the county have opted to install artificial grass. Safety and environmental issues continue to make the use of turf fields a controversy in many school districts, such as Bellmore-Merrick.

Ryan, as well as other trustees, voiced some concern with reports that the artificial fields contain carcinogens. The crumb rubber infill used to soften the turf is often made of recycled tires. Ryan said that after reviewing the research from the state’s department of conservation and department of health, he believed the fields are safe.

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