The Latin School of Chicago approached the Park District several years ago and negotiated a controversial deal. The Latin School would contribute funds to build a new soccer field on park land in exchange for the right to use it for at certain times. The overture was one of many in recent years that have been effectively eating away at the public status of the parks. But the private school that already has so much had to have more.
The school had long played its soccer matches in the public parks, but was tired of using grounds it considered so poor.
Now, two million dollars later, there is a really beautiful lighted playing field in a plum location in south Lincoln Park that the Latin School uses for its athletic program. The Park District also uses the field for children’s recreational programs in the summer, and in the evenings it’s not unusual to see men dressed for soccer getting out of cabs and heading over to the field.
Political deals loom large in our culture, casting a shadow on otherwise innocent scenes. Beautiful in itself, the playing field nonetheless reminds us of something uneven.
KW says
Not to mention that, being made of artificial turf, the Latin playing field is also “eating away” at the natural green space of the park. Artificial turf is documented to heat up to much higher temperatures in sunlight than natural turf. Is this the way to go in an era of rising temperatures?
(Note also that one of Latin’s rivals, the private Francis W. Parker School also recently installed artificial turf (but not lights) on its own playing field, which is next to, though not in Lincoln Park.)
Celia says
It’s a conundrum: is it better to have the artificial turf, which perhaps cuts down on the need for ordinary maintenance (which the city pays), or is it better to have natural turf, as in Soldier Field, where the Park District is responsible for maintaining it, even though the main users are the Chicago Bears? Personally, I don’t think that tax dollars should go to maintaining either of these fields.
Thank you KW!