FUHSD board approves bid process for synthetic stadium field turf

During the August 28 Fallbrook Union High School District board meeting, the board approved initiation of the bid process to install synthetic turf on Fallbrook High School’s stadium field.

The initiation of the bid process authorizes district staff to solicit bids. If district staff determines that a specific bid is satisfactory, approval for a contract will be brought back to the district board.

“We’re obviously excited that this will come to fruition,” said Chet Gannett, the Fallbrook Union High School District’s assistant superintendent for business services.

Authorizing the bid serves two purposes. Although the money for the project was obtained from private sources rather than from district funds, the school district is a public entity and a bid process is necessary in the absence of special findings which would justify a sole-source contract. The other purpose of going out to bid is to obtain specific cost figures from vendors.

“We know it’s an expensive project,” Gannett said. “Going out to bid means that the vendors and installers will actually price it.”

The preliminary estimates for the synthetic surface are in the range of $750,000. “It’s going to be completely privately funded,” said Fallbrook High School athletic director John Hayek.

Most of the larger donors wish to remain anonymous. “It’s very generous, obviously,” Hayek said.

The bid closing date was left to the discretion of district staff, and Gannett has not yet determined an exact bid period. “We want to leave it open long enough so we can get a good representative sample,” he said.

Bidders usually include an expiration date for their bids, but they can generally hold the bid price for 60 to 90 days. That will allow a return to the school board, which generally meets on the second and fourth Mondays of the month, for approval of a contract. “The only thing we did Monday night was to start the ball rolling,” Gannett said.

“We’re still in the very early beginning stages,” Hayek said. “A lot of particulars to work out still.”

The limited period of holding the bids means that work will likely be performed during the school year rather than during the summer. “No matter when we do it, there will be some interference with some activities,” Gannett said.

Gannett will work with Hayek and other athletic interests to minimize that disruption. “If we choose to break ground at the end of football season, we can squeeze it in,” Hayek said.

Hayek spent four years as Fallbrook High School’s varsity boys soccer coach. He notes that the soccer team plays primarily tournaments in December and any pre-league home games could be played on the field hockey field or at Ingold Field. That would allow the new field to be installed between the final home football game and the first home soccer game. Hayek plans to confer with the football and soccer coaches sometime this month.

“I’m excited about it,” Hayek said of the installation of the synthetic turf.