Discussion of Temporary Lights at Victory Field Coming to a Subcommittee This Week

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A Town Council subcommittee will meet Tuesday to discuss using temporary lights to light fields in town, including the track and oval at Victory Field, for youth sports.

The Human Services Committee will meet Tuesday at 7 p.m. in Town Hall.

The meeting comes around the same time that a committee will be appointed to discuss of renovation the track area of Victory Field. The subject is being restarted after a contentious first attempt where many residents opposed putting in artificial turf in the middle of the oval, and neighbors objected to adding lights to the field.

Watertown youth sports programs have complained that they do not have enough time on fields. The football and baseball field at Victory Field are the one some of the few fields in town with lights, presently.

4 thoughts on “Discussion of Temporary Lights at Victory Field Coming to a Subcommittee This Week

  1. If these types of issues are so important why wasn’t the Victory Field Committee created at any point in the last 2 years?

    Town absolutely should not take this up separately, lighting was a big part of the problem with the first Phase I plan, stop taxing residents’ time by making us organize to fight poorly planned projects and knee jerk reactions to situations. When I was growing up, we knew to register early because youth sports filled up and you would be left out, end of story.

    Meeting on this announced 5 days before it is scheduled feels like an end around attempt and the fact that it’s late August when everyone’s trying to get in a last few activities before summer ends makes it look/feel even worse.

  2. Chris,
    So you’re solution is to leave kids out of sports programs because that’s how it was when you were growing up? Great idea. This is temporary lighting to solve a problem around kids sports. A problem of field space that’s existed in town for a decade. Kids who play sports do better in school and don’t do drugs. Maybe we should pay now instead of pay later..

  3. Gary –
    It’s very simple – programs have a capacity, if you want to get in, sign up first. You act as if this is the only sports program around. I am assured it is not.

    My concern is this – How many temporary crutches become permanent fixes? I went to school where overcrowding required trailers, billed as temporary, but once they were in, they never left. This is a case where the town leadership has had two years to address the VF renovation and lighting issue and they have failed to do so, thus we are in this crisis. That failure does not mean that residents and neighbors concerns should be tossed by the wayside. Do you live next to the fields that will be lit?

  4. Chris, the VF ad hoc committee really has nothing to do with the issue of temporary lights. They are looking at ALL fields as options – not only VF. I can also assure that the VF ad hoc, as constituted, will vote against permanent lights at VF because there’s too many people not associated with youth/HS sports on the committee. That leaves us with the problem we still have of not having supply to meet our demand for youth sports – and more kids are coming! If you’ve ever coached a youth team or had to schedule for one you’d know what a true lack of space we have. Your simple solution to just leave kids out of youth sports so that people in million $ homes don’t have to pull down their blinds makes me sad for the youth of our town.

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