Memorial Field track deemed unsafe for competition, City exploring $385,000 bleacher removal

The future of athletics at Memorial Field has encountered a new obstacle.

A November inspection of the track surrounding the field deemed it unsafe for practice and competition, leaving the city’s middle and high school teams, totaling between 240 and 280 students each spring, to overhaul their scheduling.

Robert Gidari, a USA Track and Field official and former physical education teacher in Merrimack, noted cracks every 10 to 15 meters across all six lanes of the surface. Grass growing within the cracks, as well as issues with the sandpits, pole vaulting area and shot put surfacing, would put visiting teams at “risk and a great disadvantage,” according to Gidari.

The area’s general deterioration and the visible need for significant repairs only add to the risk of injury, he warned.

“I do not believe that it is a safe venue to hold meets. It is in need of at least resurfacing and structural repairs,” Gidari wrote in a report to Concord Athletic Director Stephen Largy. “It would not be safe to hold competitions on this track.”

Largy said the teams knew this was coming down the line and that, sooner or later, they would have to find a solution for some practices.

Throwing areas will remain in use, and athletes will still be able to use the facility for jumps, shot put, javelin and discus for practice, but not competition. Concord High has reached an agreement with Merrimack Valley to host practices at their facilities once a week, while the middle school will use Broken Ground’s cinder track.

Head Coach Zach Procek said the risk to his team and their opponents is too high to host any competition.

During his eight years coaching cross country and indoor track, Procek said he’s been disappointed to watch the facility fall into disrepair.

Injuries have plagued his teams, particularly runners, and the condition of the track made winning the girls’ Division I championship last spring especially arduous work.

“I don’t know if many in our local community truly understand how essential that facility is and how broken down it has become,” Procek said. “It is a critical space, not just for our track program but for all of our fall and spring athletic programs.”

The condition of the facility isn’t just a barrier to the success of the program, he said; it can also affect the college prospects of athletes. Procek said he worries for the other programs that make use of the space, including Special Olympics, Girls on the Run, clubs and adult league sports.

“I hope that this becomes a higher priority for the city than it currently is because Memorial Field isn’t just for the schools,” he added. “It’s for everyone in the greater Concord community.”

Largy said he’s confident that Procek and the track staff can still find success despite having to restructure some practices.

The track will remain open for community use but not for competitions, Concord Parks and Recreation Director David Gill said.

The inspection’s findings come on the heals of a proposed master plan to completely overhaul Memorial Field, including a new track, fields and an overall reorganization of the land.

They coincide, too, with a negative assessment of the facility’s football and baseball bleachers, further underscoring the need for upgrades.

In the recent assessment, The Turner Group, a Concord-based architecture and engineering firm, found the main football bleachers to be “code deficient.”

The firm observed deflections, deformations, breaks and deterioration in the floorboards, seating, stairs, concrete piers and cross-bracing supports under the football bleachers.

Across the park, the report noted issues with the Doane Diamond Bleachers, including breaks in fencing and fencing supports, deformations in the structure’s frame and weaknesses in the aluminum floorboards.

The City Council passed a resolution in early March to remove the main and visitor football stands, as well as the middle stands behind home plate at the baseball field, with costs totaling $385,000. The council’s final decision on the removal, expected to come in April, will require a two-thirds majority vote and a public hearing.

The Turner Group previously recommended the same action in 2019, when it found similar issues with code compliance and safety at the bleachers. At the time, the main football bleachers had been serviced last in 2016, when more than 2,000 wooden boards were replaced for $21,000, according to the Department of Parks and Recreation.

“I think everybody recognizes Memorial Field is in need of some TLC, so to speak,” Gill said. “And I think before we spend a lot more money on things, I think it’d be really nice to have at least an approved master plan and permitting plan to understand where we should make those investments.”

Concord Superintendent of Schools Tim Herbert said the district is evaluating its options for future events.

Graduation is one of the biggest events hosted at Memorial Field each year. Herbert has considered keeping the ceremony there and adding additional seating, but no final decision has been made.

“We instead have reached out to other institutions in the city. The one that I believe we’re going to ultimately end up formulating a plan with is NHTI to accommodate us for graduation,” Herbert said.

He said he expects to communicate updates concerning the graduation ceremony in the coming weeks.

More information and resources on the history, maintenance and future planning for Memorial Field can be found on the Parks and Recreation website.

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