LYNNWOOD — The city of Lynnwood plans to renovate the Meadowdale Playfields along 66th Avenue W.
The two soccer fields will get artificial turf, as will three infields in the softball diamonds. The project is expected to cost about $3.5 million, with construction anticipated next year, said Lynn Sordel, the city parks director.
The Edmonds School District owns the 27-acre property, which is maintained and managed by the city of Lynnwood through a long-term contract. The city of Edmonds also has rights to use the fields.
The soccer fields will be designed to also accommodate lacrosse, football and rugby, Sordel said. Soccer and lacrosse have been growing in popularity for boys and girls in recent years, he said. The softball fields are used by youth and adult community leagues.
The soccer fields are a mix of clay and sand. They’re muddy in the winter and rock-hard in the summer.
“The sand-clay surfaces are just not conducive for good quality play in our climate,” Sordel said.
For now, the fields can’t be used for high-school competitions because of the problems, according to the school district. More school use is expected after the changes.
So far, $1 million for the project will come from an existing school district bond, with $1 million from Lynnwood’s capital facilities budget. Since August, the city also has received $750,000 in two state grants for the project, Sordel said.
The work will focus on about 5 acres of the site, which has been in use since the mid-1980s. The school district has rights to the fields during the school day, with youth and adult community sports leagues and tournaments typically scheduled in the evenings and on weekends.
The fields already have lighting, parking, bathrooms and concession stands, Sordel said. Since the closure of the old Lynnwood High School, Meadowdale provides the largest public athletic area in the city.
“A facility like the playfields is just screaming to be updated and renovated because the community would be using those spaces year-round,” he said.
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com.
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