University News

New Artificial Turf Coming to Carr’s Hill Field

May 28, 2024 • By Matt Kelly, mkelly@virginia.edu Matt Kelly, mkelly@virginia.edu

A fence around Carr's Hill Field with a closed sign on it

Carr’s Hill Field, used for club and intramural sports, marching band practice and other activities, is getting a new artificial surface and other upgrades. (Photo by Matt Riley, University Communications)

Carr’s Hill Field is coming up in the world – by about 5 inches.

The field, used for club and intramural sports, marching band practice and activities such as kinesiology courses through lifelong physical activity, is getting a new artificial surface and other upgrades.

“The field is a primary space for the marching band to practice,” said Erica Perkins, senior associate athletics director and executive director for UVA Recreation. “We have a lot of our student club sports that use it. It’s the only competition-sized field for recreation purposes and it is used by various clubs – soccer, lacrosse, field hockey and Ultimate (flying disc) clubs. This is their primary practice and competition field.”

Alas, the area is also in a floodplain, Perkins said.

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“We’ve already experienced quite a bit of water damage, even on the turf,” she said. “And some of that had to do with all of the construction that was going on around the field.”

Facilities Management Project and Construction Management Services is leading a project for resurfacing Carr’s Hill Field, installing the first new surface in 10 years. The work will include adding about another 5 inches to the undersurface to the field in order to improve the drainage system, said Scott A. Reed, senior associate director of UVA Rec's Facilities and Management.

Runoff from the field drains into Meadow Creek, which is part of the overall drainage and stormwater management system that includes holding tanks at the Dell and a stormwater retention pond at the Ivy Road entrance corridor.

“These holistic drainage improvements will improve field integrity and lifespan moving forward,” Reed said.

A view of the Carr's Hill Field coated in gravel

The artificial turf surface has been removed, the support surface will be raised about 5 inches to improve drainage and then a new artificial turf surface will be installed. (Photo by Matt Riley, University Communications)

“We’ve had a lot of mitigation steps that we’ve taken, and this is just a little extra insurance to make sure that we have proper drainage off the field,” Perkins said. “It can potentially last even longer than a 10-year cycle.”

Replacing the facility’s old scoreboard is also part of the project. “In 20 years, the technology has changed completely, so it’s time for an upgrade,” Perkins said.

Workers will replace the current 6-foot-high fence around the field with a 10-foot-high welded wire fence and upgrade the lighting control system, as well as convert the lights themselves to energy-efficient LED lighting.

“And once that work is done, the path around the field, outside of the fence, will be redone,” Perkins said. “It will be level and in good shape for people to walk or run around it.”

The project, which started April 22, is expected to be completed by early September.