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February 8, 2011

Turf wars; PN-G to see replacement to 2-year-old field

Mary Meaux The Port Arthur News

Two years of Southeast Texas summer heat and sun has taken their toll on the faux grass at Port Neches-Groves High School’s Indian Stadium.

The lush green field  with purple and white markings has seen numerous football and soccer games since it was installed in 2008.

But last fall the field began to show some wear and tear.

Scotty Lewis, program manager for LANWalton, alerted school board trustees to a problem with the turf during a recent meeting and of plans to rectify the problem.

Superintendent Rodney Cavness said he spoke  with officials at FieldTurf, the company that installed the artificial turf, and was told a representative would visit the site to evaluate the field sometime in late January or early February.

The problem, Cavness said, is fraying of individual turf fibers in the white sections of faux grass.

“It’s premature failure on the part of the turf itself,” he said. “After speaking with a representative, he said of about 4,000 FieldTurf fields there are about 50 of them showing premature wear. All of these are in the southern portion of the U.S. where it is very hot with extreme sunlight/ultraviolent rays. They indicated they will fix this and it won’t be a problem. We’ll see.”

Darren Gill, vice president, global marketing for FieldTurf, said he spoke with the company’s customer service department and confirmed a representative will be visiting the PN-G field. He could not provide more information about the specific issues with the field until a complete review is available, he said.

FieldTurf has 4,000 fields in the United States with more than 500 fields that are eight years or older.

PN-G’s Indian Stadium underwent a $10.2 million renovation in 2008 as part of a 2007 bond issue. Projects at the stadium included a new drainage system and FieldTurf playing surface, all new home seating, high definition video display and scoreboard, two-tier press box and new concessions and restrooms on both sides of the stadium.

Cavness said installing the turf was a costly and multifaceted project — at about $1 million — that began with the dirt playing surface and subsequent drainage system before the turf is installed.

The turf typically comes with an eight to 10-year warranty, he said.

Cavness is mindful of the frequent usage of the field.

“I indicated to them very directly there will be no interference to football or soccer,” he said.

mmeaux@panews.com



 

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