AMHERST — A plan that would include seeking $1 million in donations and another $1 million in grants could give momentum to the long-awaited plans to rebuild the track and its associated playing field at Amherst Regional High School.
Though a $4.74 million reconstruction of the site remains the preferred option, including replacing and reorienting the track and installing a synthetic turf field inside it, Amherst Regional School Committee members have been unsure whether there is a way to get the project done with the necessary support from all four member towns.
On Tuesday, Finance Director Douglas Slaughter presented an initial plan that would get the direct cost to taxpayers down to $1.5 million, or about the same price as only replacing the track that was built in 1999.
According to Slaughter, the community donations and grants would both be $1 million, while Community Preservation Act funds totaling $1.2 million would go to the project. Amherst would pay for about 79% of the costs, in part by using some of its American Rescue Plan Act money.
The latest plan is significantly less expensive for the communities than apportioning assessments based on a regional formula, where Amherst would pay $3.67 million, Leverett $392,925, Shutesbury $328,755 and Pelham $255,285.
The preferred track renovation option comes from Weston & Sampson of Boston. It includes replacing the latex-covered asphalt track and reorienting the track from east-west to north-south. The field, which has been plagued with issues of bad drainage and other problems for several years, would get an artificial turf surface that Slaughter said would more than double its current use.
Assistant Town Manager David Ziomek said a generation of athletes will benefit if the rebuilding happens. “We’ve always envisioned this as a transformative project for the region,” Ziomek said.
While Ziomek told the committee that the town doesn’t have a history of large-scale fundraising, he believes that contributions to capital campaigns for institutions in town such as the Hitchcock Center for the Environment and the Amherst Survival Center demonstrates the possibility.
But Amherst representative Jennifer Shiao said such fundraising seems like a “heavy lift” and wonders if doing so for the track may be too ambitious. “That’s a huge amount of money to raise through fundraising,” Shiao said.
Amherst representative Irv Rhodes said he is unwilling to bring the proposal before each town if it is something that is not affordable.
Similarly, Peter Demling, who also represents Amherst, said he needs to hear back from member towns about a project of this magnitude. Demling, though, also said there may not be a better time as the ARPA money gives a realistic infusion of money.
Ziomek said he and Slaughter, joined by Amherst Finance Director Sean Mangano, could approach the member towns with a final plan over the next two weeks, with a vote by the committee likely March 15.
Both Pelham representative Margaret Stancer and Allison McDonald of Amherst said fact finding will be important in advance of the vote, but they are not yet ready to push off the project another year.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
