An expansion of the 85-yard athletic field at Digital Harbor High School in Federal Hill is currently underway. The project is extending the field into a former gravel parking lot, which was used by school staff as well as for an outdoor classroom space.
The project was spearheaded by Councilman Zac Blanchard, who also coaches football at the school, and Principal Mavis Jackson.
The field is made of natural grass, and the expansion includes adding new soil and grass to the northern section of the field.
The expansion will bring the field to approximately 120 yards from fence to fence, making it close to regulation size for football, soccer, and lacrosse. Councilman Blanchard said the school will eventually need to add a few additional yards to provide more space on both ends of the field and make it suitable for games. This will require structural work on one side of the field.
The field currently meets Gittings St. and a sidewalk on one end and a lowered surface parking lot on the other.
When completed, the expanded field will be large enough for full-field practices and girls flag football games.
The project has a $102,000 budget and was funded primarily by the South Baltimore Gateway Partnership, with additional funding from Blanchard’s district budget. Lorenz is the general contractor on the project.
Blanchard said the new field, which is expected to be ready in the spring, will allow Digital Harbor teams to practice on campus rather than travel more than a mile to neighborhood parks, including Latrobe Park and Riverside Park. It will also free up those fields for local youth sports organizations and elementary and middle school sports teams that use them.
With the staff parking lot being removed, permitted parking spaces for Digital Harbor staff were added along Covington St.
The school has another outdoor classroom space on the west side of the building.
Councilman Blanchard said a school survey about the needs of Digital Harbor identified a full-size athletic field as one of the top two priorities among students.
The field has also been used in recent years by the Charm City Athletics youth flag football league.
