Damage to Kickemuit Middle School field unresolved as sports season nears

By Ethan Hartley
Posted 8/9/23

Warren DPW Director Brian Wheeler said last week that the town was still trying to secure an estimate from a third party contractor about how much the field would cost to repair, and who should be held responsible for paying.

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Damage to Kickemuit Middle School field unresolved as sports season nears

Posted

Social media users may have seen multiple posts from Warren residents in recent weeks regarding damage that occurred to the KMS field a couple weeks back, apparently from use of a vehicle on the field following a heavy rain storm that resulted in chunks of the surface being torn up.

According to Parks and Recreation Director Tara Thibaudeau, that damage was the result of activity by the East Bay Football Camp, which had rented use of the field and damaged it during one of their camp sessions after riding a Polaris vehicle on it.

Warren DPW Director Brian Wheeler said last week that the town was still trying to secure an estimate from a third party contractor about how much the field would cost to repair, and whether or not the football camp should be held responsible for paying that.

“It’ll be up to solicitor’s office to decide how to approach that,” he said.

Thibaudeau said in a prior interview that there was a possibility of utilizing the field off the bike path opposite to the Pete Sepe Pavillion, but those plans hadn’t materialized as of the interview.

Wheeler said that he, Thibaudeau, and the various groups that utilize fields in Warren for sports and other activities were meeting to discuss a more long-term vision for playing fields in the town.

“We’re trying to talk about what we can do to potentially make all the fields better shape so we can rotate and set certain sports on certain fields,” he said. “It’s easier to maintain when you know what’s being played on it instead of having a million different sports on one field.”

As for the damage at the KMS field and whether it will be addressed in time for soccer activities starting up in the next couple of weeks, Wheeler said they were focused on ensuring the kids have a safe place to play.

“I’ve spoken to numerous parents and organizers for soccer, specifically, who were kind of concerned…Their concerns are just, and I’ve talked to them about us doing everything we can to make sure they have safe playing fields,” he said. “We’re not going to just ignore it, that’s for sure.”

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