Score! Pittsfield's 'Mini-Pitch' is Ready for Goals
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| Boards framing the former rink were removed, and this system was installed in a couple of days about a week and a half ago. |
PITTSFIELD, Mass.— The city now has a "mini-pitch" soccer field at Crane Park, placed over the longtime rink that had seen better days.
"I think it's a real improvement," Parks, Open Space, and Natural Resources Manager James McGrath said, pointing to social media comments believing the city took away inline skating.
"Well, we didn't do that. The surface can accept rollerblades. In fact, as soon as this was constructed and we sort of said it's open, the first one to show up was a gentleman with rollerblades and a hockey stick. He skated around and loved it."
The Parks Commission saw pictures of the completed field on Tuesday.
Fueling excitement around the World Cup, U.S. Soccer worked with the Massachusetts Youth Soccer League to make these facilities available to 20 communities — one at the park at the intersection of Benedict Road and Springside Avenue.
The project was funded entirely by grants. In June, the City Council accepted the gift of a "mini-pitch" facility, valued at over $100,000, and $10,000 from the Mill Town Foundation to ready the site.
Boards framing the former rink were removed, and this system was installed in a couple of days about a week and a half ago. The mini-pitch's click-together sports tile floor is bordered by a galvanized steel system with two goals, benches, and storage containers.
"Folks can really play lacrosse in there; they can play in-line hockey in there, and of course soccer is ready to go as well," McGrath said.
"We're trying to continue with this multi-sport approach here at this park, but with a much upgraded piece of infrastructure going behind it."
The mini pitch system came with a light tower and two LED lamps, but Crane Park does not have power, and it won't be illuminated.
The former goals were left outside of the rink for lacrosse players to use, as the goals' metal netting is large enough for a small ball to sail through, and the city is considering screening the upper panels to stop a lacrosse ball.
McGrath anticipates that Crane Park will see organized leagues pop up at some point; a local group has already posted video footage playing on the mini-pitch to social media.
Decades ago, the Crane Park facility was a wading pool. It closed in 1980, and before the turn of the century, it was filled in and marked for hockey.
"We had attempted to do some crack filling. It just didn't look good. That surface was beyond its useful life," McGrath said.
Tags: parks & rec, soccer,
