Land Use

Artificial Turf Field Moves Forward in Barrington Despite Residents’ Opposition

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BARRINGTON, R.I. — Barrington Public School’s artificial turf field is moving forward to the glee of some, including student athletes and their parents, and the chagrin of others, such as the 200 or so people who have signed a petition against it.

Those in favor of the field discussed the need for improvements to Victory Field, while those against it are concerned an artificial field will cause negative environmental impacts.

According to School Committee Chair Thomas Peck, the designs for the artificial turf field are being finalized with the aim of scheduling a School Committee vote on a request for proposals in March, around Town Meeting time, and starting construction on the project this summer so that the field can be ready to use for the fall sports season.

The project, which will cost about $4.5 million, will be paid for by the Barrington Public Schools capital reserve fund, leaving about $2 million in the fund for other projects and future needs.

At a School Committee meeting Thursday night, Peck explained the members’ reasoning behind the decision largely lies in the heavy use and degradation of Victory Field, which is grass.

“I candidly don’t really like the idea that Victory Field is going to be synthetic. From a nostalgic perspective, my preference is always going to be grass. But the reality is, the number of teams that are practicing on Victory Field, it’s unsafe,” he said.

Several student athletes spoke at the meeting to the same effect, describing how the uneven and divot-filled field has caused injuries and drawn negative comments from competitors.

Seth Fisher, president of the East Bay Bristol County Lacrosse Association, said the town doesn’t have enough space to create safe, natural grass fields and noted Barrington is “the laughingstock” of the state when it comes to the poor condition of its fields.

Fisher said he doubted the environmental impact of putting in artificial turf, explaining that the town had already conserved lots of land.

“It’s not that big of a deal, guys. I’m addressing the conservationists,” he said at the Jan. 9 meeting. “I like to fish. I like to hunt. I want everything that you guys are asking for. It’s literally two acres of land at the high school with lights, parking, and everything. Like, get over it.”

Of the 23 people who spoke before Peck closed the public comment at the standing-room-only meeting, 10 were in favor of installing turf and 13 said they were against it.

Jessica Allen, a community member who has organized other residents against the field, told ecoRI News she was disappointed that the committee is supporting the artificial turf installation despite residents’ concerns.

She said she felt the community had been given a false choice between keeping the inadequate and potentially unsafe field at Victory or getting artificial turf.

Allen said she is largely against the turf because of the potential that it may contain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which could contaminate groundwater around the field. She testified at the meeting about her concerns over those impacts, citing letters of opposition to the material from other town bodies and Save The Bay.

PFAS are a class of chemicals that are found in many different products, such as waterproof fabrics and firefighting foam, as well as some artificial turf products. Ingesting some types of PFAS has been linked to several serious health issues, including decreased fertility and developmental delays in children.

“I’m asking that you see these legitimate concerns and reconsider,” Allen said to the committee.

Other committee members echoed Allen’s worries and discussed the other health risks associated with artificial turf, including increased player injuries.

“There are no sports physicians who would think that artificial turf is safer than well-groomed natural grass,” Karl Machata, a former team physician at Providence College and a Barrington resident, said at the meeting.

Machata also noted that he had voted in November against ballot questions asking to use money approved at Town Meeting for artificial turf fields at Barrington Middle School and on municipality controlled lands — along with about 60% of voters.

“This is an end run against the public will,” he said. (Peck said he understood some residents found the questions confusing but the ballot votes did not preclude the committee from using reserve capital funds, off municipal land and not at the middle school, at Victory Field.)

Allen said the group of residents against the field will likely talk to an attorney, although she isn’t sure if they have legal standing to take action.

Barrington is just one of several communities in Rhode Island and around New England grappling with whether to install artificial turf for their sports field. Burrillville has been sued by a resident over a turf field it wants to install at its high school, and state officials are concerned that artificial grass in North Smithfield may have contaminated groundwater with PFAS.

A state law passed last year will also ban artificial turf knowingly manufactured with PFAS by 2029.

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