Residents press Harris Township to finish Hess Field; staff cites stormwater rules for Whitehall delays

Brad Graham, a Harris Township resident, told the board the township must finish Hess Field and provide sanitary facilities for tournaments, saying roughly $2,000,000 of taxpayer investment at the site demands action. "The fields are great, but there's nothing else out there," Graham said, pressing the board to move the project this year.

Township staff responded that Hess Field work is underway and that temporary trailer restroom facilities are budgeted and expected this summer as an interim measure. A staff member explained that Whitehall Road Regional Park remains closed to public use because it must meet Ferguson Township's stormwater ordinance; testing by a new engineering team required retesting and a third submission to the Ferguson Township engineer before approval. "As a government entity, I will not open a facility that does not fully comply with the law," a staff member said.

Board members and residents pushed for faster progress and asked about interim solutions. The board indicated support for pursuing a temporary, ADA‑accessible trailer restroom at Hess Field while continuing engineering work and coordination with Ferguson Township on stormwater corrections. No final timetable for permanent infrastructure was set; staff said they will rent or deploy a trailer facility this summer and continue work on sewer connections and long‑term fixes.

The board also discussed the authority's pending decision on whether to pursue a three‑ or four‑field master plan at Hess Field and noted the authority will forward its recommendation through the committee process before final action by the general forum.