Cherokee OKs soccer field on county-owned site

Cherokee County has agreed to lease the rear portion of a five-acre tract it owns on Hickory Road to the Cherokee Soccer Association for use as a practice field. GOOGLE MAPS

Cherokee County has agreed to lease the rear portion of a five-acre tract it owns on Hickory Road to the Cherokee Soccer Association for use as a practice field. GOOGLE MAPS

The Cherokee County Board of Commissioners has approved an agreement to create a soccer field on Hickory Road, east of Holly Springs, for the Cherokee Soccer Association.

The field would go on the rear 1.76 acres of a five-acre parcel the county has owned since 1976, according to a staff report to commissioners. The front 3.24 acres is leased to the Cherokee Shriners Club at 1185 Hickory.

The rear portion, historically known as Bryan Walker Field, has not been used for sports for years and is partially overgrown, staff said.

The county will clear, grub and grade the field, according to the agreement. The soccer association will lease it, install irrigation and grass, and maintain the site as a practice field. Under a separate, updated lease agreement with the Shriners, also approved by commissioners, the club will share its parking with the soccer association.