Haverhill High School will finally have a girls’ softball field as early as this May. (File photograph.)
The Haverhill Hillies can rejoice, as Haverhill High School will be having a girls’ softball field installed at the Haverhill High School Athletic Complex.
According to City Purchasing Director Steven S. Bucuzzo, city officials have awarded a contract of $1.156 million to the Quirk Construction Corporation of Georgetown to build a new synthetic turf field. Bucuzzo confirmed that the contract was for Haverhill High School and construction is expected to be finished by May 15, 2019.
The discussion on whether or not to build a girls’ softball field has been ongoing since 2016, when the City Council unanimously approved a resolution requesting Mayor James J. Fiorentini to support the creation of such a field. The project received approval from the Haverhill Conservation Commission last August.
Several City Councilors were quite pleased with the news. Councillor Melinda Barrett said it was great that the field is finally under construction and “the parents have been waiting for a very long time.”
Councillor Colin F. LePage believed this project is long overdue, saying “I’m glad we were able to move it forward.”
Councilor Mary Ellen Daly O’Brien said she has been working hard with parents for the past two years to see this project approved and never gave up. She said “it’s not right for the high school to not have [a field] for the girls,” mentioning that other girls’ softball teams have refused to play in Haverhill due to the lack of a quality field.