Taconic Track Closing For Repairs, Spring Completion SetBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
05:34AM / Friday, September 20, 2024 | |
 The Taconic High School track will be closed starting Monday for reconstruction. |
PITTSFIELD, Mass.— Work will soon begin on Taconic High School's track that has been cited as an "accident waiting to happen."
On Thursday, the city announced that the track will be closed to all users starting Monday. It is slated to reopen in late spring with a new surface and other elements for a better user experience.
It is a popular spot for walkers and runners of all ages but is not the only rubberized track in the city, as there is another one at the Belanger Youth Athletic Facility at the corner of Newell and East Streets.
The project will cost about $1.625 million and is funded through local and federal monies. This includes $1.38 million in city capital funds and $300,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funds.
Mountain View Construction of Chicopee was awarded the contract. The city worked with the company in 2020 for improvements to Clapp Park and the installation of a splash pad.
Most notable, there will be a new six-lane track with an eight-lane straightaway that will be completely rebuilt from the base up. The facility will also see improved drainage, new fencing, a new layout for an improved flow of field events, new goalposts for football, a new handicapped parking spot, and an overall improved layout for a better fan experience.
The Conservation Commission signed off on the project last year.
Parks, Open Space, and Natural Resources Program Manager James McGrath reported that disruptions in the track season are being handled by the school's athletic director. There will be a plan for away meets and alternate practice spaces.
Drainage problems on the rubberized quarter-mile running track were emphasized during the fiscal year 2024 budget hearings, with community members in favor of the renovation filling council chambers on the day that capital funds were discussed.
Student Kailynne Errichetto said the school has been unable to host track meets because of the conditions of the facility and drainage issues, calling some aspects an "accident waiting to happen."
She said some of the cancellations could have been avoided if the drainage system had worked, explaining that the track was soaked and the infield was a "disgusting muddy mess."
"The community and the Taconic and PHS athletes would really benefit from this proposed capital infusion towards the renovation of the track because we want good training," Errichetto added.
"The track is home to so many different people and events."
She said people of all ages utilize the track and it is time for an upgrade.
Longtime Pittsfield educator and athletic coach Joseph Albano described the history of the track, which was built in the late 1960s, and the high schools' struggles with insufficient facilities.
"It's been 30 years of pleading and begging to redo the track at Taconic High School," he said.
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