Councilors resumed a Memorial Field master-plan presentation at the Nov. 24 continued meeting, heard from consultants and staff about program elements and phasing, and then voted to table formal action until a Dec. 8 public meeting so the full Concord School Board can review the subcommittee recommendation.

Consultant Chris Huntress (Huntress Sports) outlined the recommended layout — moving the track to the southwest corner, adding a field house with 14 team rooms, public bathrooms and concessions, and a new maintenance building. Eric Gerard, a civil engineer with BHB, described a clockwise phasing concept with Phase 1 focused on the track and immediate drainage and access work.

City staff gave a master-plan-level cost estimate: design and permitting was estimated at about $1,200,000 and the projected construction cost for the presented concept was reported as just under $32,000,000. Staff emphasized these are planning-level numbers and that further design work (grading, earthwork and final specifications) would refine them.

Councilors asked that presentation materials and Concord TV recordings be posted to the city website and requested an addendum showing current field utilization. Acknowledging school-district coordination is required, the manager said the subcommittee recommended the school board consider the plan at its Dec. 3 meeting; both bodies would then be expected to appropriate design funds and schedule public hearings as appropriate.

The mayor asked for a motion to table consideration to Dec. 8; the council moved, seconded and voted to table the Memorial Field item to the Dec. 8 meeting.

Outcome and provenance
- Action taken: Motion to table Memorial Field master plan was adopted and the item was set for reconsideration on Dec. 8. The presentation and discussion run from SEG 053 to SEG 686 in the record.
- Next steps: Staff will add the utilization addendum to future reports and post presentation materials to the city website; the full school board will review the subcommittee recommendation on Dec. 3.

Quotes
“There was no preconceived budget,” the city manager said about how the Memorial Field plan was developed from community input.

“We do have this on our website. We have all the Concord TV videos, all the presentations, all the history of Memorial Field, all the deeds and everything,” the city manager said when asked about public access to materials.

Closing
The council deferred action to allow school-board review and to gather additional utilization and financial detail before proceeding.