Crews replacing the artificial turf on La Cañada High School’s football field have made rapid progress since May 31 and could be finished before the Fourth of July holiday, La Cañada Unified Chief of Business and Operations Mark Evans told school board members at a meeting Tuesday.
In a brief tour of the field on Wednesday, Evans pointed out some of the new technology being used in the project, including a 1-inch hard foam padding installed under the turf to prevent injury and a natural material called zeolite being used for infill.
David DiGeronimo, a product manager for AstroTurf overseeing the project, said zeolite absorbs less heat and is potentially less hazardous than the crumb rubber that preceded it.
“It has the ability to retain moisture and then slowly allows it to dissipate — the same thing as natural grass,” he said.
Evans said once the field is complete, the next task will be replacing the school’s aging track. A total of $1.5 million was budgeted for all the work, estimated to be completed by July 30.
Article courtesy of Sara Cardine with the Los Angeles Times.