Field Renovation Set to Begin at San Carlos Highlands Park

August 6, 2010

All-Weather Turf Installation

What in essence marks the end of a decade-long battle that pitted neighbor versus neighbor in San Carlos, the Planning Department has issued permits for the removal and grading of the existing field at Highlands Park, which is the first step in the transforming the field from a natural grass field to a synthetic, all-weather surface.    According to this announcement on the City website,  the contractor has been given the notice to proceed for the removal of the existing field, and work is expected to begin within the next 10 days.

For those of you not familiar with the all-weather turf saga, the idea to resurface one or more of the athletic fields in San Carlos was tabled nearly 10 years ago as a way to accommodate the increasing usage of the limited number of athletic fields in the City.   The topic was debated fiercely for nearly a decade in City Council meetings, in the press, and even in the courtroom.  But while other cities on the Peninsula forged ahead and installed all-weather surfaces on their playing fields, San Carlos remained one of the few communities without a stitch of all-weather turf..until now.

Earlier this year the City Council, expecting a positive outcome from the anti-turf camp's last efforts to legally block the turf, awarded a contract to replace the playing surface at Highlands Park.  So here we are.

Proceed With Caution.

As is noted in the announcement, there will be quite a few trucks and equipment in the area while the construction is in process, and the tennis courts will be inaccessible during this time.  So if you don't need to be up at Highlands Park for the near-term, it's probably advisable to steer clear of the area.

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11 Comments

  1. SC Teacher on August 6, 2010 at 1:17 pm

    So this field upgrade was ostensibly done for the benefit of year around and all night sports leagues like soccer. Too bad these kids don’t put the same effort in the classroom.



  2. neighbor on August 6, 2010 at 3:59 pm

    Groan! Please change Highlands Park to the new “Highland Sports Complex”. While we’re on this subject, installation of cutoff timers )not accessible to the coaches) on the lights at night will go a long way towards curbing excessive games stretching into 10 p.m. Also, we’re tired of people using the batting cage at 7 a.m. every Sat/Sun.



  3. Teresa on August 6, 2010 at 5:05 pm

    Remember when ,during re-seeding, the groundskeepers would stretch barriers around the field? I used to laugh when carloads of kids wit their CY soccer coaches would blatantly jump the barriers and practice on the grass. It just goes to show which interest group has more weight in this city.



  4. PRT on August 6, 2010 at 6:33 pm

    That’s funny. The field would be closed for reseeding and it would be raining and still you could see these kids and coaches practicing. It shows where certain life priorities lie.



  5. Jen on August 7, 2010 at 2:21 am

    Do you mean the constant pinging noise as the bat hits the ball? Actually it’s grown men and their kids doing batting practice. They come out to Highlands with big buckets of baseballs. I wish they’d go to Burton and do their thing. It’s enough to drive us up the wall. It’s a sign of the time; people just lack manners and couldn’t care less that they’re waking you up at 7 in the morning.on weekends. Hello Little League???



  6. scott on August 7, 2010 at 3:43 pm

    You live next to a park, of course there are going to be sounds associated with people playing. Welcome to “a society.”

    I envy those that live next to a park – not only are they regularly exposed to the wonderful sight of people playing, recreating, and HAVING FUN, they get to hear the joyful sounds.

    Make lemonade Highlands neighbors – it won’t be that hard – and I think you’ll grow to like it.



  7. scott on August 7, 2010 at 3:53 pm

    By renaming it, you’d be acknowledging that which it has been for at least the past 15 years – it is (and has been) a sports complex.

    You’ve got tennis courts, you got room for three or more baseball/softball fields, you’ve got room for two to three soccer fields, you’ve got a track around the upper field, you’ve got a beautiful play are with many modern amenities, you’ve got a great little snack shack and storage facility, you’ve got batting cages, and you have a well kept restroom facility.

    You’ve got beautiful scenery. You’ve got a nice picnic area. And you’ve got loads of parking.

    Highlands Community Park is a beautiful community (not neighborhood) park that also serves as a sports complex.

    That is great stuff! Too bad we don’t have one or two more of these.



  8. Pat B on August 8, 2010 at 4:53 am

    Welcome to selfish San Carlos. We’re going to have In-n-Out as close to our houses as Highlands is to you. They aren’t open at 7 am, but they are open until 1:00 am, and their drive-through will hold 17 cars, all idling and spewing nasty fumes. Can you imagine that on week nights when you’re trying to sleep? These are not grannies out for a burger at midnight, they are young people with booming radios and after-market mufflers.



  9. Pat B on August 8, 2010 at 5:00 am

    And what does that teaching the kids? They always talk about all the positive lessons kids learn from sports; what about the lessons they’re learning about being good citizens?



  10. John on August 9, 2010 at 10:43 pm

    The upper field should also be converted to artificial turf and have lights installed. I agree with Scott; Highlands has always been a purely sports facility. It’s all these neighborhood people that are selfish whiners who are complaining. The kids in all the leagues desperately need a place to play.



  11. Pat B on August 11, 2010 at 5:08 am

    Yes, those pesky neighbors who don’t want to live next to a sports complex, don’t want their property values reduced, don’t want their neighborhood overrun with traffic, don’t want to live under the lights and listen to the noise from 7am or 9 pm or later. How dare they whine?

    It’s a good thing you’re not teaching these kids to be selfish, narcissistic adults who think that their sports are more important than other people’s quality of life.



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