The selectmen have twice passed on a request to kick in $15,000 to help cover unexpected costs at the Tiger Hollow project undertaken this summer at Ridgefield High School.
The project by the private Tiger Hollow Committee is rebuilding what is usually called the practice football from grass into an all-weather artificial turf surface that can be used year-round by many different high school and youth sports.
The new field is the lower one in this drawing.
“We’ve raised and spent about $800,000,” Tiger Hollow Committee Chairman John Pavain told the Board of Selectmen.
At the board’s meeting Wednesday, July 31, Mr. Pavain said the added costs stemmed mostly from the need to put a more elaborate drainage system into the field.
Drainage problems became evident during the work on the project this summer.
“It didn’t rain in April, but it rained every day when we did it in June,” he said.
The selectmen listened politely, and spoke admiringly of the work the Tiger Hollow Committee does in terms fund raising, and championing the improvement of the high school’s athletic facilities.
But they didn’t come up with a contribution.
“It’s a great project. We just don’t have the money,” said Selectwoman Di Masters.
In two discussions of Tiger Hollow’s situation during July, members of the board had noted that the town is now contributing substantially to maintenance of the town’s all-weather fields.
For some time the town has been allocating $43,000 a year for a sinking fund for the periodic refurbishing of the main Tiger Hollow stadium field with a new crumbed rubber and artificial turf surface.
This year a similar sinking fund started with a $20,000 a year contribution from the town for the eventual refurbishing of the Scotts Ridge artificial surface field.
First Selectman Rudy Marconi told Mr. Pavain and the selectmen that he would talk to School Athletics Director Carl Charles about the possibility of using money from an account that is financed from gate receipts at sports events — not tax dollars — to help with the practice football field project.
Mr. Marconi said this week that he will pursue the idea with Mr. Charles, and he praised the Tiger Hollow facility, its new field, and its organizers and donors.
“An incredible, very welcome addition to that facility,” he said of the new all-weather field. “And we cannot thank the private donors enough for stepping up to the plate and once again contributing to the Town of Ridgefield an asset that will serve both the youth and adults for many years to come.”