NFA-NL Thanksgiving game moved
Both city police departments recommended changing time to afternoon, citing safety concerns
Norwich — The Norwich Free Academy-New London High School annual Thanksgiving football game — the oldest high school rivalry in the country — will be moved to 1 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 27 at NFA at the “strong recommendation” of Norwich and New London police, who cited an unspecified “recent conflict” between people from the two cities.
“The Norwich Police Department feels that it is in the best interest of all involved parties to move the date and time of the game,” a press release issued by Norwich police Lt. John Perry said, “however the ultimate decision was made, under advisement, by Norwich Free Academy.”
The recommendation was made to NFA officials during a meeting last week with Norwich and New London police and NFA officials. No specifics were revealed in the announcement to change the game time. The press release said the meeting was held “in regards to citizen and student safety during the proposed Thanksgiving Day football game. Both New London and Norwich Police recommended to Norwich Free Academy officials to change the date of the game due to recent conflict between citizens from both cities.”
NFA spokesman Michael O’Farrell said the school also is considering “appropriate measures for the safety of our players and our fans.”
The game originally was scheduled for Wednesday evening, a decision made after positive response to last year’s move from Thanksgiving Day to Wednesday night due to weather, O’Farrell said.
NFA does not have school Wednesday, making the shift to afternoon easier without the concern about bus and school departure traffic, Norwich Police Chief Patrick Daley said.
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Residents have approved spending up to $5 million to purchase and renovate the building. The town spent $2.77 million to purchase the building in May and put aside $500,000 for communication hookup costs, leaving $1.7 million for design and construction costs.
Not exceeding the $1.7 million budget could hinge on whether the town can receive a state waiver to not upgrade the building to withstand hurricane force winds, something typically required of modern public safety buildings.
The hurricane upgrades would cost an estimated $243,737 more, possibly pushing renovation costs beyond the $1.7 million budget.
Dagle said the committee won’t have a finalized cost for the building until it receives construction bids from contractors.
From there, the committee will make recommendations on including the elevator, sally port and holding cells, to the boards of selectmen and finance, for a decision. The architects said the renovations may be completed by July 2020.
“We don’t know what it’s going to be. It could be less. We may get a vendor who wants to come in and get work done (for less), who’s hungry for work,” Dagle said after Tuesday’s meeting. “We are still in the ballpark of the remaining $1.7 million.”