Image: City of Abbotsford / The City of Abbotsford and the Abbotsford Board of Education have come to terms on a 30-year joint-use partnership that governs the oversight and maintenance of four synthetic turfs on the school district's property.

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Turf agreement in Abbotsford

City of Abbotsford, SD34 sign 30-year deal governing oversight of 4 synthetic turfs in Abbotsford

Apr 17, 2024 | 2:17 PM

ABBOTSFORD — The City of Abbotsford and the Abbotsford Board of Education (SD34) have come to terms on a 30-year joint-use partnership that governs the oversight and maintenance of four synthetic turfs on the school district’s property.

In a news release from both agencies Wednesday (Apr. 17), the city and school district say the joint agreement entails a new cost-sharing arrangement for field maintenance and an annual assessment of each field to direct planning for end-of-life replacement and maintenance.

With a new pact in place, the field at Abbotsford Senior Secondary will be reopened to use by community sports groups and funds will be allocated for turf replacement on one of the synthetic fields at W.J. Mouat Secondary School, which has been closed since September 2021.

“As a Council, we value recreation and support facilities, amenities and activities that connect us. Ensuring proper maintenance and enhancement of these fields not only supports our local school athletes, but also the many community sports organizations in need of a space to train and play,” said Abbotsford Mayor Ross Siemens. “We are very happy to have renewed this partnership with the Abbotsford Board of Education and to extend the use of these artificial turf fields for the future.”

The chair of the Abbotsford Board of Education welcomed the agreement as a way of reinforcing access to recreational facilities that promote an active community.

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“Our Board has a longstanding history of working with the City to benefit not only our students, but the entire community,” said Abbotsford school board chair Shirley Wilson. “Our Board has always supported community access to our educational and recreational facilities, fostering a vibrant and active community. This renewed agreement highlights our ongoing commitment to this vision. Together, we are ensuring that these fields will continue to serve as a valuable resource for our students and the broader community for years to come.”

The agreement entered into by the school district and the municipality provides the city with overall responsibility for the management, administration, booking, operation, custodial services, maintenance and repairs of all four fields, overseeing access to the fields during evenings and weekends throughout the school year and full time during the summer.

Annual maintenance costs for the four fields have been pegged at approximately $40,000 per field, which will be split equally between the city and school board. Any capital improvements or end-of-life field replacements will be funded at 65 per cent by the city and 35 per cent by the school district, which matches each organization’s respective level of use and access to the four fields.

In early 2023, city staff and school district personnel entered into negotiations to undertake replacement of the synthetic turf and supporting amenities at the fields on Abbotsford School District lands, three of which are situated between W.J. Mouat Senior Secondary and Colleen and Gordie Howe Middle school, with the fourth on the grounds of Abbotsford Senior Secondary.