Grubb Stadium at North High School will feature both a new synthetic playing field along with an eight-lane track.
Hoover High School’s McGrane Stadium will see a new sythentic turf field along with an expanded eight-lane track.
Work that began more than four years ago to improve athletic facilities across Des Moines Public Schools is leading to significant upgrades and improvements throughout the school district.
From the opening of Mediacom Stadium to new and improved weight rooms, dugouts, concessions, press boxes, basketball courts, locker rooms, lighting, batting cages, and more across the district, multiple athletic projects have been underway. And now, four high schools – East, Hoover, Lincoln and North – have major playing field and track projects in development that will benefit everything from football and soccer teams to marching bands and color guards to the community as a whole.
When completed in Spring 2025, Lincoln will have a new synthetic turf field surrounded by an expanded eight-lane track.
In 2020, the Des Moines School Board created the Athletic Facilities Committee to provide guidance and recommendations for investments in athletic facilities to address current and future needs. Comprised of parents, students, and staff, the committee spent nearly a year looking at existing DMPS facilities as well as those at other school districts, concluding that “the work this committee has done gives the school board the opportunity to show athletes across Des Moines they are valued, and their growth in extra-curricular activities deserves to be invested in.”
“Investments in our athletic facilities are generational investments. These Improvements will contribute to a positive experience for countless DMPS students for years to come,” noted Dave Berger, executive director of operations at DMPS. “Just as the district provides educational opportunities on par with those of surrounding communities, our students who participate in athletics and activities deserve to have the opportunity to train and compete in facilities that are of the same caliber as their peers elsewhere.”
Major projects at four high schools are currently in various stages of development:
- EAST: A new synthetic turf field has just been completed to the west of East High School’s Williams Stadium. The field will be used for practices and scrimmages for various activities. East, in partnership with Grandview University, already has a synthetic playing field and an 8-lane track at Williams Stadium.
- HOOVER: The current playing field and track at Hoover High School’s McGrane Stadium will be removed and replaced with a new synthetic field as well as an 8-lane competitive track. A construction manager has been hired for the project and work will begin in the spring.
- LINCOLN: Work is nearing completion on a new synthetic turf field as well as an 8-lane competitive track at Lincoln High School. Located to the north of the main high school, when the facility opens in the spring it will provide a new field for practices and scrimmages for various activities. as well as a venue for track and field meets.
- NORTH: The current playing field and track at North High School’s Grubb Stadium will be removed and replaced with a new synthetic field as well as an 8-lane competitive track. A construction manager has been hired for the project and work will begin in the spring.
The total cost of the projects is approximately $15 million. DMPS is providing funds for all four projects while Prairie Meadows has contributed financial support for the work at Hoover, Lincoln and North and the East High School Alumni Foundation contributed to the Scarlets’ new practice field.
In addition, Roosevelt High School opened the Randy Duncan Track and Field Complex in September 2022, a project financed through a combination of district funds and TRHS Foundation contributions.
“From the classroom to the playing field, all of us at DMPS want the best for our students,” added Jason Allen, director of district activities at DMPS. “These projects and more show our commitment to supporting and building athletic opportunities for students throughout the school district.”
When completed, all five DMPS high schools will have practice fields for football and soccer teams, marching bands and color guards with a playing surface similar to what is found at Mediacom Stadium and many other venues, and the school district will have four 8-lane tracks for track and field events. These new facilities also provide the Des Moines community with additional new venues to host camps, competitions and other outdoor activities.
