DeFUNIAK SPRINGS — The football field at Walton High School is getting a long-anticipated facelift.
Workers have been on the job since May replacing aging buildings, the non-regulation track and the field to bring everything up to 21st century standards like the high school building that was replaced in 2009.
“We had a $40 million high school with a 25-cent stadium,” said Mark Gardner, director of facilities for the Walton County School District.
See photos of the renovations. >>
Planning for the multi-phase renovation began in 2010 but stalled for about a year when property values dipped and sapped tax revenue, Gardner said.
When all is said and done, the sports area will boast new restrooms and concession stands, a seating area that meets requirements for the Americans with Disabilities Act and a rubberized track that can be used for district and state meets.
The football stadium hadn’t had any major work since it was built in 1969, but a drainage issue helped prompt the project, Gardner said.
When the school was built, storm water runoff was directed to a wooded area behind it. Homes have been built there over the last several years, so the district wanted to add retention ponds to capture the runoff and avoid any future problems, Gardner said.
“It’s not that we haven’t addressed an issue,” he said. “This is just getting us in compliance.”
All the turf from the football field was moved to the practice field, and after the track was torn up the entire area was leveled. This month’s rain — 35 inches as of Wednesday morning — has slowed things down, but officials hope work will stay on track.
The work should be finished in time for the first home football game against South Walton High School, Principal Russell Hughes said.
“(The football field) is the heart of our community,” Hughes said. “It’s really going to bring a sense of pride.”
People frequently drop by to check on the progress, Hughes said. The school also has been posting photo updates on its website, but people still ask questions.
Hughes said he was asked recently what color the new scoreboard will be. The answer is Navy blue with white trim in a nod to the school’s colors.
Gardner said the district doesn’t plan to do any other comparable athletic field renovations in the foreseeable future. However, Paxton and Freeport might see new tracks soon.
Contact Daily News Staff Writer Katie Tammen at 850-315-4440 or ktammen@nwfdailynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @KatieTnwfdn.