SportsTurf provides current, practical and technical content on issues relevant to sports turf managers, including facilities managers. Most readers are athletic field managers from the professional level through parks and recreation, universities.
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/27931
Facility&Operations | By Devin Conway, PE Build the ground work properly when choosing your field surface N THE WORLD OF RECREATION and sport design and facility management, few topics can be as hotly debated and contested as the decision of what type of playing sur- face to provide the user groups. The primary question commonly revolves around whether the newly renovated or constructed field will remain natural grass or be syn- thetic turf. This decision is clearly one that will be set in place likely for several years, and in the case of synthetic turf, likely for a decade or more due to the difficulty in reverting back to natural grass due to funding limitations most owners have. When discussion initially begins in scoping out a project for improving the existing field or I building a new facility, there are several factors that need to be weighed and dis- cussed at all levels. These factors will typ- ically include: • Available capital (i.e. initial construc- tion/project) funding • Foreseeable anticipated annual M&O funding for field/facility upkeep • Required hours of field use for vari- ous end users • Expectations of a successful sports field • Alignment of design field type with all parties, including: Governing Board/Owner’s final decision makers Owner’s Project Team Maintenance Team Design Team User Groups Community at-large/Constituents • An educated understanding of proj- ect issues that may arise during the surface selection process before beginning the ac- tual process While all of the above factors are key influences in making a successful decision, the last two typically are ones where mis- steps can have profound effects. This is where advanced pre-planning is essential, and that the owner undertake the necessary time to understand where these issues may lay, and how to effectively address in the decision making process. The important tools needed by every The important tools needed by every owner and design professional are the knowledge and ability to facilitate project discussions and, ultimately, build consensus among stakeholders. 30 SportsTurf | April 2011 owner and design professional are the knowledge and ability to facilitate project discussions and, ultimately, build consen- sus among stakeholders. Creating a forum where a clear message about the project can be disseminated to those outside the deci- sion-making circle, while, at the same time, providing an opportunity for stakeholder comments, desires, and concerns be heard, is a time-honored method used by design professionals to bring all involved parties together. However, if steps haven’t been taken to align the desires of all of the inter- ested parties in the design field types and if the issues that can arise during the selec- tion process are not clearly understood, the facilitation process may face a significantly reduced chance for success. This is espe- cially true when the community-at-large is included in the facilitation process. www.sportsturfonline.com