The Jim Thorpe Area School Board is considering adding a synthetic turf field at the high school stadium, which has long been prone to flooding.

However with the permit process expected to take several months, the board says the earliest it could have the turf installed would be in time for the 2020 fall season.

The board’s athletic committee met with a representative from FieldTurf Inc. Monday night.

Bill Bamber, a regional sales manager for FieldTurf, said it would cost the district $1 million to $1.3 million to install turf inside the existing stadium. The total cost will depend on whether the district wants to replace the grass located between the end zones and track surface.

The turf would have improved drainage and hopefully prevented muddy games which have become a regular occurrence. It would be lined for football and soccer.

“We had a mud bowl this year,” said Pearl Downs-Sheckler, school board president.

Bamber said the turf field would be laid on top of a minimum 8-inch stone base which would help drainage. Some schools who use FieldTurf have up to 4 feet of stone beneath their fields so it acts as a detention basin for the entire campus.

The field itself has a life expectancy of 10-12 years, and FieldTurf guarantees it for eight. The stone base is good for about 40 years. Replacing the turf field would cost about 40 percent of the original project, Bamber said.

Director of Building and Grounds Ted LaRizzio said the district currently spends $15,000-20,000 per year on labor for the field, and another $40,000-50,000 on materials.

“It is very time-consuming at that field. Between two people we spend 40 hours per week from July-November,” he said.

Maintenance on the turf field would consist of using a grooming machine, which hooks to the back of a golf cart or utility cart, every 6-8 weeks. The machine is included in the overall cost figure.

Downs-Sheckler asked if it would be possible to eliminate any positions on the district’s work crew if the field was installed. LaRizzio said no, and that the hours saved by the artificial field could go toward projects in other buildings.

Board members said that the field has never drained properly. In 2011, they renovated the field and placed drainage pipes underneath it. However the improved drainage didn’t seem to help the amount of water that collects on the field, which is located near the base of the Pocono Mountain.

“Since the day they finished the field, 2001, it wasn’t draining properly. Then they redid it,” said board member Glenn Confer.

Board member John Ciavarella asked how hot the turf would be. Bamber said the turf is typically 20-30 degrees hotter than a grass field, but FieldTurf offers a product that will help keep the turf temperature roughly the same as grass for an additional $30,000.

Board member Ronnie Marciante wondered if they could possibly get a corporate sponsor to help defray the cost of the field. Bamber said that Pleasant Valley is replacing its field after 12 years, and a health care provider from the Lehigh Valley is helping to cover the cost.

Downs-Sheckler asked about how long construction would take. Bamber said it would take 8-10 weeks for contractors to construct a bridge over the existing track and install the turf.

But the more important time period is the permit process — Bamber said he typically allows six months. Board member Ronnie Marciante said he didn’t think they could complete the permits and construction by the time the 2019 fall season begins. Bamber said that the price would remain the same if the district started the project in 2020.

The board agreed to direct Business Manager Lauren Kovac to look into the cost of financing the project via a bond.