With New Regulations and Official Site, the SHS Turf is Open for Business

The turf at Southington High School may have opened for basic use in November, but with a new set of regulations, fee structure and official website for game and event rentals, the turf is now officially open for business.

Members of the town’s Turf Committee last month approved a final set of regulations that will allow for both in-town groups and out-of-town organizations to begin requesting and scheduling use of the turf for a wide variety of use, according to committee member and Town Councilor Peter Romano.

“We’ve developed rates for turf field and we wanted to stay in line with the fields around us so we polled the prices set for Falcon Field (in Meriden), Cheshire High School, East Haven, Sheehan High School (in Wallingford) and Glastonbury,” Romano said. “The cost will be $100 per hour, with incidentals if lighting is needed or there is a need for an event supervisor.”

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Under the new regulations, the town’s schools and sports leagues would work directly with Southington High School Athletic Director Eric Swallow and Parks and Recreation Director David Lepreay to establish times for local leagues and this would take precedence, officials said.

Once these game times are established, however, interested parties can now rent the field using southingtonsports.com, a site originally created by Swallow and now adapted and approved as the official site for both Southington High School sports and the turf field, Romano said.

Romano said the field would remain available, free of charge, to Southington youth organizations. In order for other organizations to use the field, however, participants will be required to obtain and show proof of insurance to protect the field from damage during rental use.

To use the field, interested parties only need to visit the site and fill out a simple online form available by clicking the “Reserve Turf Field” link.

“Those who apply will automatically notified of requests received,” Romano said. “The goal is to respond as quickly as possible and offer the field on a first come, first serve basis.”

For more information, including a complete list of scheduled events on the field, visit southingtonsports.com.

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