Kickin’ it downtown

The planned 60-foot-by-120-foot field is much smaller than a standard soccer field, and is intended for casual pick-up games by community members, rather than league play or other organized activities. Brett Kaschinske, director of the Parks and Recreation Department, compared the field to the park’s nearby basketball courts.

“This is for open play. It’s a gathering place for soccer,” said Kaschinske, his voice barely audible over the sound of cement mixers and circular saws behind him.

Even as the group symbolically broke ground on the site, construction workers were already busy smoothing concrete and building the edges of the future soccer field. The field will feature synthetic turf, which Kaschinske said is more durable and requires less upkeep than natural grass. It will also include lighting — on its own solar-powered grid — which will extend the field’s usable hours during the shorter daylight hours of spring and fall. A 4-foot-tall kick-board will surround the field, keeping stray soccer balls out of the nearby streets.

Kaschinske also put in a plug for the parks millage renewal, which Lansing voters weighed in on Tuesday.

“This is where your parks millage is going,” he said. The millage was expected to win a five-year renewal in Tuesday’s primary election.

In addition to funds from the Parks and Recreation Department, the field is being paid for by a successful crowdfunding campaign hosted by Patronicity.com. The campaign raised just over $70,000, surpassing its goal of $60,000. The Michigan Economic Development Council also pledged $60,000 to the project, a matching gift tied to the success of the campaign. Scott Dane, executive director of the Capital Area Soccer League, said that the extra money raised by the campaign would go towards longterm upkeep of the field.

Dane said he hopes that the project will be completed by the end of summer, with Aug. 28 as a goal for the field’s opening.

Lansing City Councilwoman Jessica Yorko, who also spoke at the groundbreaking, welcomed the new recreational opportunity.

“It’s going to be a great asset for downtown families,” she said.