Booster club supports Option 1

The Naperville Central Athletic Booster Club has reviewed options to address the upcoming loss of athletic fields at Naperville Central due to the expiration of the lease with the Naperville Cemetery next year.

Five options to address this challenge have been presented by the school and park districts. We support Option 1 and 1A, which create new athletic fields near Naperville Central.

Both options will sustain the existing athletic programs without negatively impacting or displacing thousands of participants in the existing programs at Knoch Park.

Both help avoid the negative impact and loss of after-school time due to busing athletes off-site. They both avoid additional ongoing annual school district costs for additional trainer time and transportation expenses. To varying extents, both options anticipate the emerging field needs of lacrosse. We believe they both would help ensure the safety of athletes in proximity to school resources.

Also, both options would create an additional area to benefit community football, soccer and lacrosse, as well as to provide an additional walking trail to be enjoyed by all residents.

Both options balance the needs of high school athletes, youth sports participants, gardeners and residents. Both options allow the majority of the West Street gardeners to remain there, expanding the gardening program by 100 plots, and establish another garden community on the south side of Naperville.

We support Option 1 most strongly, as it best sustains the existing athletic communities. In addition, Option 1 anticipates to a greater and more effective extent the emerging field needs of lacrosse.

The loss of the existing athletic fields is a challenge we face. For Naperville Central and our Naperville community at large, the best answer to this challenge is to create new athletic fields near Naperville Central.

Peter A. Shamburek

president, Naperville Central High School Athletic Booster Club