WESTFORD — For those who frequent the Stony Brook School track and courts, the last few weeks may have brought an unexpected sight: the track being torn up.
Reconstruction began June 9, Director of Facilities Jeff Goodwin said. The project is expected to be completed by the end of October with several upgrades.
The track and surrounding areas have deteriorated in recent years. In 2021, Director of Athletics Jeff Bunyon told Goodwin the track was in disrepair, with significant damage near the wood line where roots had grown underneath.
“There was significant heaving happening in the track, some roots were growing under it,” Goodwin said, “That presented a significant safety concern and that continued to get worse and worse to the point where we couldn’t host track events at the facility anymore.”
That concern launched the process of hiring an engineer and seeking Town Meeting approval for a replacement track and courts project, which began in spring 2022.
“It’s a tripping hazard in the middle of a track — it was a safety concern,” Goodwin said, “When you go to an opposing teams facility and see the level of care, that is representative of the overall maintenance of the town and the facility and if we can’t host events at our track I think that shows poorly for the town. I look at safety concerns like that as a top priority.”
The project cost was estimated at $2.2 million and is funded through Community Preservation Funding. MJ Cataldo won the bid at $1.9 million, leaving about $200,000 in contingency funds.
The track surfacing will go down in the third week of September, from that point the track will need 21 days before anyone can be allowed to utilize the track. Officials expect it will be ready by the end of October.
At completion, Stony Brook will gain not only a new track but additional amenities.
“As part of the project we are replacing all the fencing around the track around the basketball courts and tennis courts,” Goodwin said, “We’re going to be putting some bleachers … We tore out the dilapidated red shed that was there we’re putting in a new smaller shed for storage.”
The wood line has also been trimmed back to to mitigate future overgrowth and an asphalt buffer has been added on the wood side of the fence.
Goodwin meets weekly with the construction team and the engineers on the site and remains the lead point of contact for the town.
“It’s inconvenient temporarily, but the reality is that we are going to come away with a really nice amenity that the whole town can use,” Goodwin said.
