Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Recreation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Select Board approves seasonal temporary field lighting for youth sports, limits use to 8 p.m.
Summary
The Select Board authorized temporary, removable field lighting at Bicentennial Field and Bridgemeadow (and optionally Wickasee) for spring/fall seasons, with a required 8 p.m. shutoff, abutter outreach encouraged and youth organizations responsible for all costs; the vote was unanimous.
The Tyngsborough Select Board on April 6 approved a joint request from the Recreation Department and town youth sports organizations to allow temporary, removable field lighting for limited seasonal use at Bicentennial Field and Bridgemeadow Fields (and optionally Wickasee Ballpark).
Recreation Director Alison Page said the units would be mobile lighting towers (generator- or solar-powered), would be used only while sunset occurs before 8 p.m., and would be sited and shielded to minimize spill into neighboring properties. Youth-sports leaders said the measure addresses safety and scheduling constraints for roughly 550 participating youth and their families.
Connor Dehane, president of the youth soccer association, described a need to safely extend practice time without changing program length. "We just want to make sure that the time that we have is used effectively and safely," he said.
Select Board members asked the groups to contact abutters with details before equipment is deployed and recommended a one-year pilot followed by a town review. The boards motion authorizes use through March 31, 2027, with the organizations bearing full financial and operational responsibility. A roll-call vote on the motion carried unanimously.
The board asked recreation staff to return with a short after-action report and resident feedback following the pilot season.
