Schools

Mayor Emanuel and Alderman Moreno Break Ground on New Athletic Fields for Roberto Clemente IB World School and Wells Community Academy High School


Alderman Joe Moreno
Ald. Joe Moreno (1st) at the groundbreaking for the new field. Photo credit: DNAinfo/Alisa Hauser

$6.5 million investment will go towards building competition-size facilities in the first ward

CHICAGO–(ENEWSPF)–August 4, 2017. Mayor Rahm Emanuel joined Alderman Proco Joe Moreno yesterday to celebrate the groundbreakings of new athletic facilities at two Chicago Public Schools (CPS), Roberto Clemente IB World School and Wells Community Academy High School. Construction for both projects is expected to be complete by Fall 2017.

“World-class academic institutions like those at Wells and Clemente deserve to be complemented with investments in their athletic programs,” said Mayor Rahm Emanuel. “These students will have brand new athletic fields when schools open in the fall.”

The fields at Clemente will be used primarily for softball and baseball, while the new field at Wells will support soccer and baseball. Construction for both schools will include spectator seating, upgrades for lighting, underground drainage infrastructure and storm water management, and other amenities. The fields will support school sports, as well as recreational programming for the entire community.

“I am thrilled that we can give Clemente and Wells students the athletic fields they deserve,” said Alderman Proco Joe Moreno of the 1st Ward. “I want to thank local community leaders and students for their commitment in making these fields a reality.”

A $3 million investment at Wells Community Academy High School will provide the school with a competition-size synthetic turf soccer field and baseball field. Additional funding will go towards parking lot improvements, chain link fencing and a netted nylon ball stopper system. The project is funded by CPS and OSIF, and will be coordinated with the City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development.

A $3.5 million investment at Roberto Clemente IB World School will support construction of a 1,000 square foot competition-size synthetic turf field for baseball and softball, and a sodded turf for practice and recreational use. Additional updates include team dugout areas, a press box and dual scoreboard, and removable outfield fencing with foul poles, a ball stopper system and backstop. The project will be paid for by the Capital Improvement Tax. Clemente has continued to make academic gains since 2011 and graduated its first wall-to-wall IB class in 2016.

“These fields will help our students lead healthy, active lives while providing experiences that will instill the invaluable lesson of teamwork,” said Chicago Public Schools CEO Forrest Claypool.

This comes in a line of continued investments to underdeveloped parts of the 1st ward. Among these investments is a new $3.5 million dollar facility for La Casa Norte here in Humboldt Park, which allows one of Chicago’s most innovative non-profits to serve more residents.

Source: http://cityofchicago.org


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