When you head out to the Carlisle Soccer Complex this weekend, you won’t be able to miss the new field development work that’s underway.  Construction has begun install several acres of newly leveled, fertilized and seeded fields.

This is the direct result of the fund raising that our club has done recently and we’re looking to continue that progress for the next couple of years.

We are starting with about 4 acres on the west side of the complex, where the u14 field was located. The u14 field has been relocated to the east section, east of the middle driveway. The u6, u8, u10 and u12 fields will also be shifted slightly to the east.

The sandy soil has been turned over, the ground has been laser leveled, fertilizer has been mixed in and new seed has been planted. Once the ground temperature warms up to 55 degrees, we expect emergence within two to three weeks. Even though the turf installer has optimistically stated that the fields could be ready in as little as 45 days, the Club has decided to postpone any playing on the new fields until 2009 to establish a strong root structure and avoid the damage many soccer clubs have endured this season in playing on their fields too prematurely due to a cold spring.

“This is exciting because it means that we’re moving forward, doing the things that players and parents have been asking us to do,” said Mark True, Club president. “We’re kind of starting over on our field development, doing things we would have liked to do a year or two ago, but simply didn’t have the funds available. Our new underground supply lines, our above-ground irrigator and our new John Deere lawn mower have all been made possible because we’ve been able to managed our registration fees carefully and raise additional funds in a variety of ways, from grants to car washes to bottle and can drives.”

“Once this section has been well-established, we can move on to another section, and within a couple of years, our entire complex should be more evenly covered with grass.”

Parents and players are asked to stay off of the newly seeded area, and to keep children from playing in the attractive dirt piles - the soil contains fertilizer.