Grayslake North getting artificial turf

Athletes returning to Grayslake North High School this fall will not only be starting with a fresh schedule. They'll also have new "grass" under their feet.

Crews have begun installing artificial turf on the school's stadium field this week. The $860,000 project should be complete by Aug. 1, administrators say.

"This is a great advantage for us," said Grayslake High School District 127 Staff Services Director Scott Fech. "Unless there is snow on the ground, we can use the field 365 days a year."

Grayslake North joins Libertyville, Vernon Hills, Lake Zurich, Stevenson, Carmel Catholic and Mundelein high schools with artificial turf. Grayslake Central High School had synthetic turf installed a few years ago.

Fech said the new surface will be used by physical education classes along with football, soccer and lacrosse players. With the current natural grass field, this isn't always an option, because the field is sometimes too wet for gym classes.

"This will have much better drainage," he said.

Work is being done by Montreal-based FieldTurf. It's the same company hired by most of the other schools in Lake County.

Associate Superintendent Mike Zelek said it would have been great to have artificial turf installed when the building was constructed six years ago, but said the district wasn't sure it could afford it then.

"We had to take a wait-and-see attitude at that time," he said. "There were a number of unknowns in terms of the construction costs."