By Gary Lloyd
PINSON — The Jefferson County Board of Education in August 2014 voted to purchase seven acres of property near Willie Adams Stadium on the Pinson Valley High School campus for $150,000.
The purpose of the purchase from seller Jane Engesser was to provide land for the expansion of athletic facilities.
The board of education in June 2014 had appointed civil engineering firm LBYD to design plans and specifications to improve and expand the athletic fields at Pinson Valley High School.
According to a June 2014 memorandum, “There are no practice fields for football, soccer, and band, and the main football field is insufficient to meet the current physical demands of the school’s programs. In addition, the campus is ‘landlocked’ and prevents any expansion to meet current and future needs.”
The proposed plan, which shows Innsbrooke Parkway between the football practice field and softball field
photo courtesy of Facebook
The Pinson Valley varsity football team spent last summer practicing on the field behind the Old Rock School due to the field at Willie Adams Stadium being in poor shape.
The proposed plan shows an 80-yard practice field being built behind the north end zone at Willie Adams Stadium, and a crosswalk across Innsbrooke Parkway to a 276-space parking lot and softball field.
The city of Pinson owns the property between the football stadium and the south side of Innsbrooke Parkway, which the Jefferson County Board of Education would need to acquire to make the project fully happen. Part of this tract will contain the sidewalk that will begin soon as part of a Safe Routes To Schools sidewalk grant the city received, Mayor Hoyt Sanders said.
“This parcel is the one the BOE appears to have requested,” he said.
The expansion is drawing closer, and with it is coming some resistance from residents of the Innsbrooke subdivision, which sits near the property.
Several expressed their concerns to the Pinson City Council on Thursday. They voiced their concerns about an increase in traffic, a buffer zone between the neighborhood and practice field area, students crossing the street, and safety.
Duane Leard, who lives in Innsbrooke, said he wants the neighborhood residents to be involved in the process, to stay abreast of what’s happening.
“We have a lot at stake,” he said.
Pinson City Councilman Joe Cochran said all football, soccer and band groups use the field at Willie Adams Stadium, so a practice field is a need. He said the addition of a practice field would be a “very pro thing” for the community.
Sanders said the plans are “very fluid” right now. When one resident asked about the proposed parking lot having an impact on the lake in Innsbrooke — due to vehicles and leaking fluids — he said it wouldn’t have an impact because people would only park there six or seven times per year for games.
Pinson City Councilman Robbie Roberts lives in Innsbrooke and said he doesn’t know if the practice field will fit in the space shown in the plans. He wants the plans to be exact, for someone from the Jefferson County Board of Education to measure the space between Willie Adams Stadium and Innsbrooke Parkway.
“They’re nervous,” Roberts said of Innsbrooke residents.
There isn’t a set timetable on when any and all the expansion projects could happen, though some have suggested the practice field construction could begin in April.
Teresa Williams, another Innsbrooke resident, said her main concern is the entrance to her neighborhood, one she wants to be preserved. She said a buffer between the practice area and Innsbrooke Parkway would be good.
“It’s just important to us,” Williams said.
The Pinson City Council meets again Thursday, Feb. 19 at 6:30 p.m. at Pinson City Hall. The Jefferson County Board of Education meets Thursday, Feb. 26 at 10 a.m.
Contact Gary Lloyd at news@trussvilletribune.com and follow him on Twitter @GaryALloyd.
