La Playa Stadium Closure

Major renovations to the synthetic running track and the field turf at La Playa Stadium will entail the closure of the facility to the public for much of the summer.

Santa Barbara City College announced that the stadium — including the spectator seating and stairs — will be off limits from Monday, May 17, to Tuesday, August 31, while the field is being replaced and the track is scraped down to its asphalt base. Lanes will be painted on the track to make it usable when the facility reopens. The field, home to SBCC’s football and soccer teams, will be open to permitted use only.

There will be another closure of the stadium from Monday, December 20, to Monday, January 31, 2011, while a new track surface is installed.

Measure V, a bond measure passed by the voters in 2008 to support the college’s infrastructure and facilities, will fund the two projects, estimated to cost from $1.5 to $2 million.

Steve Massetti, program manager for Measure V projects, said the synthetic turf, installed in 2002, is badly worn and uneven. The all-weather track dates back to 1987. It has twice received new surface coatings, Massetti said, but has become worn down from year-round use by recreational joggers as well as college and high school runners.