District explores turf, other athletic complex upgrades

What started in March as a group of sports-minded private citizens, business owners and coaches brainstorming ways to fundraise for artificial turf at Cloquet High School has now turned into a much larger project.

Cloquet school board members gave their approval Monday for school district officials to explore possible revenue sources and a construction process/timeline for the following items: replacing the grass football/soccer field with turf, moving the tennis courts and doubling the size from four to eight courts, moving the discus/shot put field to the current tennis court location and replacing the track, along with reconfigured seating in the bleachers and a new scoreboard. District officials had already asked two companies to scope the project: both estimated the combined renovations at close to $3.3 million in costs, and up to $4.5 million with construction management and contingency costs included.

Superintendent Michael Cary confirmed with the Pine Knot that they aren't asking the citizens group to fundraise for the entire costs, although they are hoping they can help cover the costs of the turf, estimated at roughly $1.25 million. They don't want to raise taxes to pay for it. That's where the exploration of revenue sources comes in.

"Our goal is, if the community group can fundraise what we're hoping ... that we can do this project without any ask of taxpayers," Cary said.

It makes sense to do all the work together, Cary explained. The track is nearing the end of its lifespan and would need to be replaced in another three years or so. The tennis courts are cracking badly, and some schools won't play here because players have to split up and play at Pinehurst Park as well. Finally, having turf will allow the district to get a lot more use out of Bromberg Field, which is now mostly reserved for games and isn't used in early spring or late fall when there's snow.

"Whereas if you have a turf field, all of a sudden you can use it for pretty much everything," Cary said.

Cary stressed that the board was not approving the project, its costs or funding streams on Monday, just allowing district officials to move forward with explorations.

"We would discuss the process and revenue with the board before we spent a dime," he said.

Also Monday:

• Board members voted unanimously to verify the election results. Board members Hawk Huard and Dave Battaglia won reelection, along with newcomer Sarah Plante Buhs. Board chair Ted Lammi, who has served for nearly 10 years, did not win reelection.

• Cary shared that hockey families at the high school and those with kids in Bantams and PeeWee levels will be surveyed regarding boys hockey playing in Class A or Class AA. The combined Cloquet-Esko-Carlton boys team now plays up to Class AA, despite having a combined population that qualified the Lumberjacks to compete in Class A, which the girls team has done for several years. They will bring survey results back to the board before the end of January, the cutoff for any changes according to the Minnesota State High School League.