Julie Pheney

Why haven’t high school districts in #Illinois put a bubble around their turf fields from Nov. 1 to April 1? It would help on cold days, rain days, winter days and if left up long enough, it would help on heat days, too. Think of a school like Hinsdale South, Hinsdale Central, Downers North or Reavis in the Chicago region for example that has a free-standing turf field that isn’t able to be used unless the weather cooperates. All these turf companies are stealing money from districts getting them to buy new turf and then the turf is only used half a year. Tell me what other part of a school building has millions invested in it, and it’s only able to be used half a year by a school district? You don’t think that turf would last longer - more years - if it was in a controlled environment half the year? A bubble would help all high school sports programs, the band, local middle school programs, local JROTC and most of all - PE classes during the day. Think about PE alone, as it’s the one high school course jammed more than any subject half of the school year in Illinois. Unlike classrooms, PE needs a good deal of space. You have that outside space when the weather is good, but not in the winter or wet spring and fall. A bubble costs a little more than $2 million and can done at no-additional cost to taxpayers for public schools, as it pays for itself over a 6-7 year window through rentals and an even shorter period of time if corporate naming rights are figured in. You’re looking at needing to average $1,500-$2,000 in daily rentals during that 150-day stretch each year and a basic corporate naming-rights deal to have the bubble paid off in 7 years to then turn it into a revenue driver for the district so it can help enhance other facilities or programs within the district at no additional cost to taxpayers. High school districts need to add true marketing leaders to their staff to realize they’re leaving opportunities on the table. As the youth sports world continues to make deals with local communities and state officials to build facilities that they then gabble up and drive tax revenue, high school districts have valuable pieces of property that they’re misusing half the year because people are not seeing past the tree to see the forest of opportunity. #MoreThanJUSTGames #IHSA