Artificial turf may be coming to the new stadium at WJ. According to Principal Christopher Garran, the administration is currently in talks with partners to help fund what could be over a million dollars to install artificial turf. If the turf were to be installed, it would come complete with an irrigation system to help prevent runoff.


The administration is still weighing various bids for partners to help fund the project. According to Garran, the school would have priority over use of the field in any deal he would be willing to make, but any partnership would still allow the partner to have a certain amount of hours of field use.

In addition to the financial negotiations that must be completed prior to agreeing on artificial turf on the field, lingering concerns about environmental impact must be addressed.

“I would have to say from an environmental standpoint it’s a negative,” said science teacher Patricia Tierney. “Normally when rain hits the surface of the ground it infiltrates into the soil, and when you have the artificial turf, it hits the turf and then it runs off, carrying whatever with it, and as that water then runs off, you’re lessening the amount of water that’s actually getting into the soil.”

Regardless of the benefit that artificial turf holds for sports teams, Garran says he will not agree to artificial turf without the irrigation system to address some of the concerns about environmental impact, and he still needs to finish considering bids before beginning any possible project.