Cobb school system defends new turf at schools

The school system plans to spend $1 million at each high school to upgrade physical education facilities, and the bulk of that is expected to go to replacing the grass on playing fields.

Sounds like a lot of money for a school system to spend during tough economic times, right? But taxpayers have already agreed to foot the bill, thanks to a special sales tax county voters approved in 2008.

Fewer than 10 percent of Cobb's eligible voters went to the polls, but nearly 61 percent supported the 1 percent special tax. All the planned improvement projects, and a projected price, were specified. The tax is expected to generate $586 million for the school system over five years.

The tax money is separate from the district's general fund, according to Jay Dillon, district spokesman. Money raised from the tax can't be used to offset teacher furloughs, for example, or make up for shortfalls due to cuts in the state legislature's budget.

Because the turfing project has already been approved by voters, all that's needed now is the Cobb school board's approval. That could come at the board's Wednesday meeting.

Putting artificial turf at the schools will save money in the long run, according to Gordon Pritz, associate superintendent for operations. Upkeep on a high school's main football field can cost $30,000 to $70,000 a year per school, depending on the weather and drainage issues, for example. Costs for sod, chemicals and sprinklers add up quickly.

And then there's water. The county uses about 70,000 gallons a week on football fields during hot Georgia summers, for a total of about 18 million gallons of water. Droughts in recent years left many fields in poor shape. Heavy rains, such as the ones that produced historic flooding in September, left a soggy mess and forced some schools to reschedule football games.

"Some of the fields have never recovered," said Steve Jones, athletics director for Cobb schools.

Jones said it costs about $10,000 to re-sod a field. "But not all schools can afford to do that."

Cobb school district leaders say they want all of high schools to benefit from artificial turf, not just those with wealthy booster clubs. They also say more than football will benefit.

"We've got all sorts of activities on these fields, like soccer, lacrosse and youth sports," Pritz said. "That use is greatly limited when it's natural grass."

McEachern athletics director Jim Dorsey, who coached football at the west Cobb school for 24 years, says the artificial turf available now is not the same as the hard green nylon grass used years ago. Today's turf is softer, the blades are made of polyurethane, and it's easier on players' legs, Dorsey says. Black rubber pellets replace the dirt needed for natural grass.

"We're playing on pristine conditions," he said.

In 2003, McEachern was the first high school in Georgia to install artificial turf, and Dorsey did his homework long before any grass blades were pulled up. He traveled to various states to look at fields and sports facilities. McEachern spent $1.2 million, funded by a private endowment, to put down artificial turf in its stadium and a practice field. Seven years later, the fields still are in great condition, he said.

In addition to saving on maintenance, Dorsey said the school hasn't had to replace uniforms as often because the fields aren't muddy. Dirt and mud no longer have to be cleaned up from locker rooms and school property, either.

"Our practice uniforms still look brand new at the end of the season," he said.

Harrison and Lassiter high schools were next in line in Cobb County to move to turf. Because the three schools already have artificial turf, they'll be able to put turf on practice fields, Pritz said.

All 14 Fulton County high schools have artificial turf, and most were funded by a SPLOST tax similar to the one passed in Cobb. Forsyth County schools also used SPLOST money to install turf at its five high schools. The state's largest school district, Gwinnett County, does not have artificial turf at any of its high schools.

City of Atlanta, and DeKalb and Clayton county schools play in community stadiums, many of which have had turf installed or plans for it. Many other schools also have synthetic turf, but the schools and booster clubs were responsible for raising the money. Etowah High School in Cherokee County financed its field through booster funds, according to Mike McGowan, district spokesman.

Holli Cash, vice chairmwoman of the Cobb school board, said the conditions of some natural grass fields make them unsafe. The district has been fiscally conservative, she says, and the turf installation won't detract from other funding needs.

"I would never support something that took away from the classroom," Cash said.

According to the school district's Web site, many other improvements have come under budget, due to lower construction costs in the economy.

Cash said other community groups, including those from outside Cobb, likely will be able to use the fields. And tax money spent by those visitors will benefit the school district, she said.

Cobb school leaders see the fields with artificial turf being beneficial to the whole county, almost like building new parks.

"I'm proud of Cobb County for stepping up to the plate and doing this," Dorsey said. "It will be one of the smartest things they've done."

Talking turf

What: The Cobb County school district is planning to install synthetic turf

Where: At each of the district's 16 high schools. Three of the county's schools already already have synthetic turf on their football fields, so these schools would be able to put turf on an additional field, such as a practice field.

When: The school board is expected to review the plan at Wednesday's board meeting. If the board approves it, the artificial turf could go down this spring.

Why: In Sept. 2008, county voters approved a SPLOST tax to fund capitol improvements at schools. The five-year tax is expected to generate about $586,000 million based on current projections. The district plans to use $16 million on physical education facility improvements, the bulk of which include putting synthetic turf on fields.