Facilities committee weighs three softball-field options after contractor work flagged deficient

The facilities committee on Sept. 11 reviewed three options for high school softball facilities and discussed ongoing construction and contractor issues on the multipurpose field. Facilities staff described the three options as: incorporate softball into the multipurpose field, make improvements at Rassafield, or construct a new softball field at the high school. "We're in need to set up a meeting with the township with respect to the Rassafield and any financial or legal impacts that that would have," a facilities staff member said, adding the goal of having that meeting before the next board meeting so the committee could return with updated cost estimates. Staff said only one of the three options has a current rough quote available; the other two remain under study. A committee member clarified that the discussion was informational only: "So just to clarify, we're we're not saying we're gonna go out and spend this money right now ... We're just, in fact, finding and data collection at this point." Committee members also discussed problems with the contractor who worked on the field. "As of last Friday at midnight, Heritage Fence is no longer working on a property," a facilities staff member said, and added they had contacted a second contractor to finish the job. The staff member described the field work as a two-phase effort: first the foul-ball netting and cabling system, then redoing drainage and related work for compliance with the MS4 (stormwater) program. "The water the drainage ditch is not where it needs to be for the Bucks County Conservation District," the staff member said, characterizing the prior work as deficient. Staff said they had district engineers on site during construction, required removal and rework of incorrectly built rebar cages, and that the engineers approved the rework. The original field contractor (named in the meeting as the company that did the initial construction) has been asked to provide a price to regrade and reseed and return the site to original specifications. Committee members asked whether parts of the multipurpose field remained in use; staff replied the rectangular/multipurpose portion has been continuously used. On the netting issue, staff said they expect two proposals from contractors by roughly the middle of next week to complete the two-phase work. No construction contract award or capital spending decision was made at the meeting; the committee treated the discussion as informational and directed staff to obtain township feedback, gather updated cost estimates for all three softball options and present contractor proposals when available.