School board to consider replacing high school’s football field with artificial turf

The Maricopa Unified School District will hold its first meeting of 2008 Wednesday night to address, among other things, the possibility of installing artificial turf on the Maricopa High School football field.

According to the request, the reason for installing artificial turf as opposed to grass is so other teams and sports can practice on the field without damaging it. The request states that limited space is available for fields with the redesign of the campus and the turf would allow for football and soccer to use the field regularly. Physical education classes could also use the field.

Beyond increased availabilty and durability, other benefits of the turf listed in the proposal include reduced maintenance costs and savings on water, the proposal states.

The board will also vote on the approval of $2,800 in donations to the district, as well as the addition of substitute teachers approved to fill in as needed.

During the study session before the regular meeting, the board will hear an update on the changes previously made to the before- and after-school program, as well as an update on the Special Education Department.

The study session will begin at 5 p.m. at in Room 1 at Maricopa High School on West Honeycutt Road west of North John Wayne Parkway. The regular board meeting will follow at 6 p.m. As with all such meetings, there will be a call to the public during which anyone can request to address the board with comments or concerns.