Pacific University and Forest Grove talking football at Lincoln Park
Devin Higgins
Issue date: 9/17/09 Section: Sports
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Pacific Athletic Director, Ken Schumann, will meet with the Forest Grove Recreations Commission at their Sept. 16 meeting to begin negotiations for the Boxers to play at Lincoln Park Stadium.
"What they've asked us to do is come to them with facts regarding the program, how we will use the facility and show them that football would be a great partner and a compliment to all the other activities at Lincoln Park," Schumann said.
As part of the current agreement between the city and the school, football cannot be played at Lincoln Park, and Pacific will be paying the full cost for any upgrades to the facility to get it ready for games to be played.
At the moment, the Field-Turf playing surface has lines for soccer and lacrosse, as well as two soccer nets, but nothing for football.
Regarding how the school will handle that cost, Schumann said that any refurbishment costs to Lincoln Park were included in the football business plan assembled by him and John Hayes, Pacific's dean of Arts and Sciences.
Schumann added that he fully expects the team to play at Lincoln Park in 2010, their first full season since the program was discontinued in 1992.
Despite his optimism he did say Pacific has an option in case an agreement can't be reached in time for next year.
"We do have a backup plan and that would be to play at Hillsboro Stadium," Schumann said.
Hillsboro was included, along with Forest Grove High School, for potential playing venues in Pacific's proposal for football. Schumann, however, is quick to point out that Lincoln Park is the ultimate goal.
Tom Gamble, the city's Parks and Recreation Director, said it's too soon to tell what will come of the negotiations, but the Recreations Commission expects to give the City Council their recommendation after the Sept. 16 meeting.
"We have made this quite clear to everyone that the best scenario for us is to play football on campus and we're looking forward to doing that," Schumann said. "But if something happens and we have to move onto another option and Hillsboro is the option we've planned for."
Pacific had the benefit of multiple locations in the area like Hillsboro Stadium and Forest Grove High School when considering a home for the Boxers. One option was also the Cannery Field on Cedar St., which the university owns. However, the field is currently for sale, so it will not be used for any Pacific sports.
Along with a playing field, new spaces in the Pacific Athletic Center for football coaches, equipment, and training rooms are also being constructed. For head coach Keith Buckley, this means he can focus on the task of building both his team and staff, rather than wondering where they'll hold court on campus.
"We're able to focus on building the infrastructure while the department focuses on putting the facilities we need in place," Buckley said.
He added that Lincoln Park is his ideal location for the team, both in terms of playing games and getting ready for Saturday.
"Teams everywhere often have to utilize small spaces to do practices, but there is more than enough space to accommodate a football team," said Buckleyn
One of the problems that can arise with a growing football team is that as it grows in size, the amount of room for necessary practices diminishes.
To counter this, Schumann and the school are looking at the open field directly behind the soccer field, to convert it into a secondary practice facility.
"We will have two fields that will be used, the turf field and the grass practice field. Part of the plan is to upgrade that field into one that can be used on a regular basis, by anyone who wants to use it," said Schumann.
Schumann pointed out that if the proposal is approved, Pacific would have a similar setup to the University of Puget Sound. The Loggers have two fields (both field-turf) at Baker Stadium, which are used by multiple sports for both practice and games.
When it comes to developing the relationship between Pacific and the community, regarding football, Provost John Miller said the school is considering a joint approach.
"We're working on the scheduling right now is with the Chamber of Commerce," said Miller. "I'd like to see the Saturday Market swing down University Avenue, right to the stadium. That's what the chamber is looking at, so we're starting right now to get our schedules together for next year."
Along with the market, Miller said that various local events, along with Pacific alumni and student events could be moved to coincide with football games.
"These were the sorts of pieces, in addition to having a game here, and having students participating in intercollegiate football, that we're looking at," Miller added. "It's going to be a very exciting time."
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