Hooksett parks volunteers and staff debate field fees, maintenance and options to reduce overuse

Members of the Hooksett Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee reviewed how other towns manage and fund athletic fields and discussed options if town maintenance budgets cannot cover repairs and rest periods for overused fields.

The committee’s discussion focused on benchmarking data gathered from Pembroke, Candia, Goffstown, Bow, Ware and others, which showed a range of rental fees, resident privileges and strategies for resting high-use turf and grass fields. Committee members said those examples could guide Hooksett if town funding for field maintenance proves insufficient.

“Some towns rent other fields to allow their fields to rest while being repaired,” a committee member summarized after reading comparative notes gathered from neighboring…