Photo Credit: © Can Stock Photo Inc. / mflippo
The city of Chandler (Ariz.) is fortunate to be in a region of the United States where residents and visitors take advantage of outdoor amenities year-round. With more than 240,000 residents, the city’s 62 parks, six recreation facilities, and six aquatic centers serve hundreds of thousands of people each year. One area that receives the most impact from this continuous use is the 47 athletic fields.
Because the popularity of youth sports is increasing year after year, the city has seen a significant, damaging impact on the condition of its fields. The parks and recreation department does not offer youth-sports leagues, but it does partner with a number of community organizations to bring youth sports to residents. During fiscal year 2013-2014, more than 4,000 reservations for field use were made by private citizens, school groups, and partner organizations.
In late 2012, after discussing these concerns, city council directed staff to implement a strategy to improve the overall condition of the field turf in order to maintain the quality of the amenities for which the city is known.