SLP High School's New Turf Field Unveiled

The Orioles will be playing on FieldTurf this year.

Follow SLP Patch on Twitter | Like us on Facebook | Sign up for our daily newsletter St. Louis Park High School unveiled its new state-of-the-art artificial turf field during a Saturday afternoon ceremony. The roughly $1 million field was made by FieldTurf, a company that athletic director Andy Ewald called an industry leader. "FieldTurf is the 800-pound gorilla in the turf business," he said in a previous interview. Super Bowl XLVI in February was held on a FieldTurf field in Indianapolis. Ewald said the new field will be safer and will get more use than the old grass field, as synthetic turf is much more durable. He also said Park was at a competitive disadvantage using a grass field, as nearby schools such as Hopkins, Minnetonka and …

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Editor's Notebook

Turf Going in at Football Stadium

The field should be complete within the next month.

I drove by the St. Louis Park High School Stadium today and got a good look at the progress being made on the new turf field. From the looks of it, a good chunk of the synthetic FieldTurf carpet has been laid, but there are still some strips along the side that need to be finished. The roughly $1 million project should be complete in time for the first-ever "All Class Reunion" on Aug. 25, as well as the fall football season. For more, see this story from April, when the school board accepted a bid on the project.

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City Signs off on Turf Field Plan

Council approval was needed because a large amount of soil will be moved.

While not getting a say over the entire project, the St. Louis Park City Council on Monday did approve a small part of the school board's plan to install an artificial turf field at the high school stadium. By a 7-0 vote, council said "OK" to the import and export of more than 11,000 cubic yards of fill at the site. During this process, construction crews will dig up soil and replace it with sand, which will form the base of the new turf field. This work will likely start in June, after high school graduation festivities are held at the stadium. Soil work will last until about mid-July, then installation of the new field is expected to go into August—wrapping up in time for the fall sports season. “I think this is a great project,” …

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Board Moves Ahead With Turf Field

A bid was accepted on Monday night.

The St. Louis Park School Board took another step toward getting a new, artificial turf field at the high school on Monday. By a 7-0 vote, the board approved a bid from Peterson Companies, Inc., out of Chisago Lakes for roughly $860,000 that will pay for the turf field. After additional labor costs are included, the project will cost roughly $1 million. For the owner of a $250,000 home in St. Louis Park, this will mean about $6.50 in new taxes annually over the next decade. The high school will get a field made by FieldTurf, a company that athletic director Andy Ewald called an industry leader. "FieldTurf is the 800-pound gorilla in the turf business," he said. Super Bowl XLVI in February was held on a FieldTurf field in Indianapolis. …

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School Board OKs New Turf Field for High School

The field is expected to be ready for use by next fall.

St. Louis Park High School will get a new, $1 million artificial turf field at its stadium after the school board approved the measure by a 7-0 vote Monday night. "It's time," board member Jim Yarosh said. "I think it's good for the kids, it's good for the community." Athletic director Andy Ewald has said the new field is needed because a lack of space causes St. Louis Park teams to overuse and tear up the school's various grass fields—making them potentially unsafe for athletes. That includes the high school's stadium field. Though it only gets used about 60 hours every year for football, soccer and lacrosse, as well as graduation, the grass can’t take the wear and tear of more events. A sturdier, synthetic field should see about 3,000 …

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Artificial Turf Plan Has Support, But No Funding—Yet

St. Louis Park Athletic Director Andy Ewald pushed the school board on Monday to support the $1 million improvement.

St. Louis Park High School could have an artificial turf field at its stadium by the start of the 2012 fall sports season. The sticking point? Funding the $1 million carpet. On Monday, district athletic director Andy Ewald made his case to the school board. He said a lack of space causes St. Louis Park teams to overuse and tear up the school's various grass fields—making them potentially unsafe for athletes. That includes the stadium field. Though it only gets used about 60 hours every year for football, soccer and lacrosse, as well as graduation, the grass can’t take the wear and tear of more events. A sturdier, synthetic field could see about 3,000 hours of use annually, Ewald projected, opening it up to more games and practices, as well…

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