Turner anxious to turn dirt on heels of passed school bond

Greg Webb

In May, the Springtown Independent School District received a healthy shot in the arm when voters passed a $35 million bond. The money will fund, among other things, a new elementary school, more intermediate and high school classrooms and a long-awaited sports complex. The complex will be located across the street from the existing football field and middle school on Pojo Drive, in the vast open area to the south and east of the school district’s bus barn.

“I wish we could start tomorrow,” said Springtown Athletics Director Brad Turner, when asked about the start date of the student events complex. “I’d be out there with my shovel to help if that were the case. But I think the most important thing right now is to get the money right and lock in on the costs. Then we can worry about getting it built. I would think that they will start turning dirt later in the summer.

“The architect told us that since 2005, the cost of construction has doubled. We’ve got to make sure we get it all under the budget and do it right because we won’t get another chance at it. But we are certainly happy to have a chance to do this.”

With rising construction costs increasingly more prevalent in the current economic environment, the committee heading the projects are tasked with getting the most bang for the taxpayer buck. This has put added emphasis on the planning stage of the complex, which includes a football stadium, as well as baseball and softball fields.

“We are still in the preliminary planning stages and do not have an actual date of completion target, yet,” Turner said. “In the last meeting I attended, we were still trying to lock in costs for metal, bleachers, etc. We’re trying to lock those in because construction costs are surely not going down. If we can get that done, then we will start turning dirt. We are trying to make all of the pieces fit into the budget we have, and we’re not done with that, yet.

“On the optimistic side, [we may be targeting] the 2009 football season, but on the realistic side, we may be able to run track [on the new facility] in the spring of 2010 and start playing football there in the fall of 2010. Mother Nature has to cooperate and a lot of things have to fall into place, but I would love to have a shot at playing in 2009.”

With the numerous new stadiums that have sprung up around the district recently, there are certainly opportunities to compare, and glean likes and dislikes from structures already in place. There is also the advantage of being able pick the collective brains of folks that have already “been there and done that” to avoid the pitfalls of such a project.

“We’ve looked at the stadiums in our district like Boswell and Saginaw,” Turner said. “Brewer just built a new one and we’ve looked at Burleson’s and Mineral Wells’, too. I’ve talked to the coaches and athletic directors [that have been through this] and discussed things that they would do differently. I know a lot of guys that have been through it. Coach [Mel] Maxfield at Burleson has been a great help to me in giving pointers and Shawn Harvey, the athletics director at Mineral Wells, who I went to college with, has given me some dos and don’ts. But it’s fun, not only from the experience in dealing with this kind of project, but the planning for something that’s going to be great for our program.

“We’ve gotten some ideas from those communities that have built new stadiums, we’ve listened to the architects and we’ve listened to our own people here, about what they want to do. We’ll piece it all together and, again, it’s got to fit the money, but it’s going to be very nice for our folks here.”

The new football stadium, the track and the ball fields will do more than give the students top-notch facilities. The attraction of hosted events during the year and during playoff times will enhance Springtown’s potential for out-of-town guests, which is always a good thing for the local economy. There is also a pride factor in having a school and facilities that convey a positive presentation of the community.

“Hosting events was certainly a selling point,” Turner said of the peripheral benefits. “We’ll have an astroturf field and an eight-lane track so we can host multiple track meets, including district meets that will bring people to our community.

“Playoff football games are also in the mix. I think the stadium will seat from 5,000 to 8,000 people. There’s a lot of tradition here and it will give the community something to be proud of. Before visitors see and meet the people they see the facilities and we want it to match how proud we are of our programs here.

“I think the opportunity to bring people in from outside Springtown, hosting playoff games and track meets, will be great. And our baseball and softball complex will be adjacent to the football stadium, so it’s the same [opportunity]. Right now, we can’t even charge admission at our ballparks because they are basically city fields.”

The migration of people to the outlying areas around Fort Worth continues, and west is the last frontier, so to speak, for folks wanting to get a little elbow room. Though the gasoline prices may have put a damper on the growth of late, Turner knows the community will continue to expand.

“Our community is growing,” Turner said. “We’re a small 4A school right now, but [the growth] is coming. It’s obviously not all about athletic facilities, but if I’m a parent that has kids who participate in sports, I want them to have good things. We certainly have a beautiful high school and a wonderful workout facility that’s second to none, and once we add [the complex] on top of that, I think it will make Springtown an even more appealing place to be.

“The bond election covers more than just the sports facilities, which I think helped get it passed. I’m really proud of this community for making the commitment to help improve our schools and our athletic programs.”