This story is so unbelievable it just has to be passed along.
Herbert H. Lehman High School in NYC (the Bronx to be exact) has not played a home football game in decades because its field is only 80 yards long. This is obviously 20 yards short of a full-size field and therefore not usable for a regulation game.
Several years ago, the NYC Department of Education gave Lehman a grant of $5 million to renovate their athletic complex, which began last fall and will be completed this September. The renovations include "new bleachers for fans, lights for night games, a new artificial turf field and the school’s first new softball diamond."
This all sounds great, except for one very large oversight: Lehman High School's new turf field will still be 80 yards long. It will still be 20 yards short of a full-sized field, and therefore is still not usable for a regulation football game.
NYC officials have stated that money was not available to acquire additional land, and to extend the field, they would have had to negotiate the purchase of an adjacent lot that they thought was owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. However, Army Corps spokespeople have said they do not own any land in the vicinity and "had little idea what the city was talking about".
The NY Times story has to be read to be believed, but the end result is this: Lehman High School students, it looks like you're going to have to wait a lot longer to play an actual home game. Sorry about that.
In the Bronx, a High School's Dream Field is 20 Yards Short of Being a Home [NY Times]
Herbert H. Lehman High School in NYC (the Bronx to be exact) has not played a home football game in decades because its field is only 80 yards long. This is obviously 20 yards short of a full-size field and therefore not usable for a regulation game.
Several years ago, the NYC Department of Education gave Lehman a grant of $5 million to renovate their athletic complex, which began last fall and will be completed this September. The renovations include "new bleachers for fans, lights for night games, a new artificial turf field and the school’s first new softball diamond."
This all sounds great, except for one very large oversight: Lehman High School's new turf field will still be 80 yards long. It will still be 20 yards short of a full-sized field, and therefore is still not usable for a regulation football game.
NYC officials have stated that money was not available to acquire additional land, and to extend the field, they would have had to negotiate the purchase of an adjacent lot that they thought was owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. However, Army Corps spokespeople have said they do not own any land in the vicinity and "had little idea what the city was talking about".
The NY Times story has to be read to be believed, but the end result is this: Lehman High School students, it looks like you're going to have to wait a lot longer to play an actual home game. Sorry about that.
In the Bronx, a High School's Dream Field is 20 Yards Short of Being a Home [NY Times]
Moonlighting as a blogger to pursue my interest and enjoyment of sports. Former high school and Division I athlete (now a "retired" family man) that loves watching and discussing all sports. Follow me on Twitter (@HoldoutSports) and like Holdout Sports on Facebook.
