News

Jul 05, 2023

Andover debates $5M sports lighting addition to high school project

ANDOVER — The Andover High School Building Committee is discussing adding a $5 million sports lighting system to what was initially proposed as $480 million project. Architects say it could extend the

ANDOVER — The Andover High School Building Committee is discussing adding a $5 million sports lighting system to what was initially proposed as $480 million project.

Architects say it could extend the hours of play, while others worry about its impact on abutters and whether or not the benefit warrants adding more cost to an already nearly half-billion dollar project.

At a committee meeting late last month, project architects presented the addition and discussed intermediate systems. The discussion is part of the schematic design phase of a project to build a new Andover High School. While the committee has narrowed the project down to one general design, its members continue to discuss possible additions and reductions to the project.

The $5 million addition would fund lighting for the fields along Shawsheen Road and to the competition baseball and softball fields. The Eugene Lovely Memorial Field already has lighting, which would remain.

James Liebman, an architect at HMFH Architects, a firm working on the project, said sports lighting can extend the usable hours of fields, particularly in the spring and fall. However, artificial turf fields are also a factor. Artificial turf is part of the base project but there’s debate about the cost of that element of the project. Changes could cut about $1.5 million from the overall price tag. Liebman said if the fields are not artificial turf, they will need time to recover from heavy use, making the lighting improvements less impactful.

Liebman said officials are taking into account the impact on neighbors and the environment.

“We would be designing for light cut off at the property lines,” he said. “Our engineers will be doing photometric calculations to confirm that.”

Lighting could also impact the flight patterns of migratory birds and wetlands species.

There is also the option for a system that would allow for future installation of lighting that would cost $125,000 per field. Director of Facilitates Janet Nicosia added this would also allow for other projects that require electricity to be built near the fields, such as snack bar.

“I can’t see us adding $5 million to this project to do lighting at all these fields. That said, I don’t think any of us know what the community is going to do in 10 or 15 years,” said committee member Shannon Scully.

The possibility of the addition has caused concern among some residents living on Shawsheen Road.

“It doesn’t belong in the middle of the neighborhood,” said Carole Somma, an abutter to the high school.

Somma said while she and other neighbors are willing to deal with the estimated five years of disruption caused by the building of a new school, lighting is a different ball game.

“Adding sports field lighting is permanent and we don’t believe it will be an asset,” Somma said.

Somma said the lights would hurt the character of the neighborhood, decrease property values and increase traffic, among other effects.

“The purpose was to build the high school to provide increased space, improve education, bring the building up to code — not to build a sports complex,” she said.

Committee chair Mark Johnson said officials plan on discussing and possible voting on the addition during the committee’s next meeting which is scheduled for the School Committee room, 30 Whittier Court, Tuesday, Aug. 8, 7:50 a.m. The athletic director is expected to talk about fields and lighting during this meeting.

While the specifics of the project are still being worked on, the project faces multiple financial roadblocks including potential negative impacts to the bond rating and the challenge of convincing taxpayers to approve the project. But advocates say a new school is necessary, due to overcrowding at the high school, and should be tackled before the cost of construction rises even higher. The committee has already voted down a $43 million parking garage addition.

Comments for the committee can be sent to [email protected]

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