Boca Raton High Stadium nearly complete
July 13th, 2008
By Mario Sarmento
SPORTS EDITOR
For almost a year, construction crews have been hard at work on the new Boca Raton High football stadium. Last Monday, the Boca Raton News had an opportunity to see firsthand how the work was going.
As those of you who drive on Glades Road or I-95 can see, the football stadium itself is practically finished.
The FieldTurf has been laid down, and the numbers and hash marks are already painted. The bleachers on the home and away sides are also complete.
Bobcats coach Eddie Giersbrook said all that remains is for the goalposts to be planted on the new field.
The turf itself is not grass, but it is no way related to the concrete artificial turf that was all the rage in the 1970s and ’80s.
According to Wikipedia, FieldTurf is an artificial turf composed of monofilament polyethylene blend fibres tufted into a polypropylene backing with a mixture of silica sand and cryogenic rubber infill. It was created by a Montreal-based company called Tarkett.
Walking on the field, you can see the rubber pellets between the blades, giving the surface a spongy feel.
The blue track surrounding the field is also finished, which Giersbrook said will allow the school to host big meets in the future.
The press box is also still under construction. It’s much larger than the old one that famously sat behind a light pole that obstructed your view so you had to look around it to see a play unfold.
It’s divided into four rooms: two on either end for coaches from the home and away teams, the standard room for media and announcers, and a fourth room, which is the largest in the box.
Giersbrook said he is thinking of making it an alumni room for old Boca Raton High players, but he needs to discuss it with Athletic Director Bill Massey and Principal Geoff McKee.
Football facility
Right now, the biggest obstacle to completing the project is the football facility that is adjacent to the stadium.
The concession area is nearly finished, and construction crews are hard at work on the two massive locker rooms inside. They may not be finished by opening day, in which case Giersbrook said the team would continue to use the physical education lockers at the school. The showers are also nearly complete, and there will be restrooms for men and women in the completed facility as well.
Next year, an Olympic-sized pool will be finished for the Boca Raton High swimming teams. In addition, Giersbrook said a baseball field for the high school team is being built at Boca Raton Middle, since there isn’t enough room for it at the high school.
All in all, the facility should be the top attraction for students and alumni as the season opens with a fall classic against Jupiter, and the much-anticipated rematch with Atlantic High in Week1 of the regular season.
Giersbrook said there is already a lot of talk in the community about the stadium.
“They’re saying I can’t wait to come to a game,” he said. “We couldn’t come last year because you were away, but we’ll try to go now.”
A dream for Coach
Giersbrook of course wants to see the stands full all season, and he thinks the stadium will be a great draw for that purpose.
Players are already excited, and a few of them got to catch a few passes when the field was unveiled towards the end of the school year.
Giersbrook said McKee and Massey will undoubtedly hold some type of ceremony to officially open the field, but he does not know what their plans are yet.
He is grateful that after spending last season as essentially a nomad, the football team will finally have a place they can call home.
“It’s probably one of the nicest things I’ve ever seen,” he said of the stadium.
“It’s like a dream.”
For video of the field, as well as Coach Giersbrook’s tour of the facilities, go to www.bocanews.com and click on the “videos” link at the top of the page.
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