The Town of Acton has replaced the lights at Elm Street Field (see illustrative photo of "rot" for one reason why). This is tremendous news for AASL:
Elm Street field is now lit better, resulting in safer night-time fielding. Previously the third base are was lit to around 20 foot-candles and now is lit at 50 foot-candles. Outfield areas were in the single-digit-to-low-teens and now are lit to 30 foot-candles!
Energy costs will be reduced with these new fixtures, saving energy and saving our league and the Recreation Department some money.
Remote administration of lights and reporting on usage will allow us to more closely monitor usage and compliance with our curfew.
The system reduces light spill onto Elm Street, which we hope will benefit our neighbors for years to come!
Here is a rough image of where the poles are located. As well as AASL, Acton-Boxborough Pop Warner Football and Acton Boxborough Youth Softball utilize the lit portions of Elm Street field and will be able to take advantage of these lights for their league activities.
As of August 28, Blais Electric (under contract with the Town) installed Musco concrete pole bases at the field, steel poles above the bases, and light fixtures atop the poles. Trenching and electrical work were completed and the control box was installed.
Donations are tax deductible. If you need it, the Town has a tax exemption number: 046-001-062.
The total project cost is $200,000. The Town of Acton approved a $70,000 capital expenditure at the 2006 Town Meeting. Pop Warner Football has contributed a significant amount through the Town. We as a league have set aside some budget money from our league fees, but we need to make a significant personal contribution as well.
Please consider helping the Town and our league with a donation specifically for this initiative. Your name (if desired) or company will be published on this website as a booster. Thank you in advance for your support!
Fencing
We recognize that other user groups, specifically Pop Warner football, has contributed a significant sum of money to this project. One requirement for the Elm Street space is to configure it to accommodate a larger football field and take advantage of space previously unavailable because of the outfield fencing layout. AASL has agreed to the removal of the fence, and in the future we will decide if we will replace the fence with either removable fencing or a different fence configuration, or if we will continue future seasons without an outfield fence.
