Residents sought for field renovation committee

EAST HAMPTON — Residents looking to be involved in the renovation of athletic fields at the high school can land a spot of the committee charged with overseeing the project.

The Town Council at its most recent meeting formally approved creation of the High School Athletic Fields Building Committee, and the town is accepting applications from residents who wish to serve on the panel.

The committee will be charged with overseeing the repair of the high school tennis court and baseball diamonds, and renovation of the running track and soccer field.

Residents last year approved spending $1.2 million on the repair project.

The money for the project will come from two sources: funds left over from the high school renovation project and a special fund that was established to pay for the repair of the track.

“The final committee consists of ‘not less than seven (7) members to include a member of the Town Council, Parks and Recreation Director Jeremy Hall, Director of Facilities Donald A. Harwood, and at least four (4) additional members of the public who demonstrate knowledge or experience deemed beneficial to the execution of the project,” Town Manager David E. Cox said, via email.

Additional non-voting members will include Cox, High School Athletic Director Shaun Russell, Director of Finance Jeffrey M. Jylkka, a member of the Board of Finance, Superintendent of Schools Paul K. Smith and a member of the Board of Education.

The council “wanted to ensure that the public was well represented on the committee,” Cox said of the

call for at least four residents for the panel.

Residents interested in serving on the committee

are asked to forward their application to Cox in care of his Town Hall office. The application can be found at https://bit.ly/2OecEOV.

During discussions about establishing the committee, councilors had pressed for

inclusion of language calling for options and alternatives.

In an email, Cox explained, “The Council wants to ensure that, as the project is specifically designed before bidding, the

committee reviews options and alternatives for the work.”

“Those options and alternatives should include lower cost options or may include higher cost options but should consider the

value to the community,” Cox wrote.

“Probably the best example is the surface material for the tennis courts. The committee will likely need to look at asphalt compared to concrete for the surface and weigh whether the increased price for concrete has enough additional life or other positive characteristics to make the expense worthwhile,” he said.