Red and White Scrimmage planned for Aug. 18 on Yorkville’s new football field

YORKVILLE – Work is nearing completion for installation of synthetic turf at the Yorkville High School football field.

Yorkville School District 115 Director of Facilities Operations Heather DiVerde said testing will be performed Aug. 16 to certify that the field meets concussion rating requirements.

Known as GMAX, the testing quantifies the hardness of a surface and indicates how much shock an athlete absorbs when making contact with the turf.

Spectators will see only the field’s green synthetic fibers, but underneath will be multiple layers of rubberized infill designed to protect athletes from concussions.

Weather permitting, installation of the turf field is expected to be finished Aug. 11 or Aug. 14, DiVerde said, in time for the impact testing.

The first use of the new playing surface will be for the traditional Red and White Scrimmage on Aug. 18, YHS Principal David Travis said.

The Yorkville Foxes football team will start its season on the road and will play is first home game on the new field Sept. 1.

The $2.3 million project, including $1.2 million for the artificial turf itself, has been underway since May 15.

Workers constructed a bridge over the rubber running track circling the field, before excavating the site and installing a drainage system.

About 300 truckloads of dirt were removed and transported for use by a local farmer, saving the district $200,000, DiVerde said.

Synthetic turf fields are designed to be porous, with the subsurface fitted with drainage pipes to take the water into the city’s stormwater system.

That means the surface is always playable and is easy to maintain, said David Yodelis, the district’s maintenance supervisor.

The area used for the track and field teams’ long jump, triple jump and pole vault has been relocated to the east of the stadium.

In addition to the new playing surface, spectators at the football stadium will be greeted by a new scoreboard.

The synthetic turf installation is the first phase of improvements for the football stadium. Future projects include expansion of the stadium’s seating, construction of a new concessions area, an athletic equipment storage area and more parking.

The district still is working to determine the cost of those improvements, DiVerde said.

Funding for all the improvements is coming from a $9 million general obligation bond issue that was approved by the Yorkville School Board in December 2020, Director of Finance Operations Kreg Wesley said.