Why not turf?

The city, it seems, is entertaining the idea of replacing the grass fields on the south side of Westmount Park with a synthetic surface at a cost of close to $2 million.

Of course, the surface would be of the FieldTurf, infill-type, and not the dreaded hard-as-a-rock, carpet-burning Astro Turf that infected fields across the world from the 1960s until recently.

That said, while it is hard to imagine Westmount Park or any other local facility covered with an artificial surface, there may be many benefits to this.

In my experience, infill turf is softer and more enjoyable to run – and fall – on than is natural grass or any other surface.

Another benefit is that is remains beautifully green regardless of the weather or season and is very appealing to the eye even when coming out from under freshly-melted snow each spring.

Even more surprising is that the turf’s markings never fade or disappear and they are usually sewn in and not painted on as they are with grass.

The downside is that any of such field or fields would have to be closed off from regular everyday usage as the risk of damage is too high.

Picture a dog doing its business in the goal crease, for example. It won’t come off turf quite as easily it would off a grass surface.

The most obvious downside of the infill-turf is the stuff with which it is filled in. The shredded rubber tire pellets that make the turf smooshy also come up easily and often stick to shoes and clothes.

Aside from the occasional brushing and re-filling, however, they don’t require too much maintenance.

The biggest concern, as I see it, would be vandalism.

Let’s say one of our local taggers decides his or her graffiti would be well-place in the middle of a brand new infill field, the city wouldn’t exactly able to mow or re-sod the problem away.

That would be a costly bit of work.

With all these positives and negatives to think about, the two most glaring points in favour of using turf instead of grass and that vandalism aside, it is inexpensive to maintain, and it is just safer and more enjoyable to play on.

With a nice, high protective fence around the field to keep punk kids with spray paint away, I would fully support Westmount installing such a field for soccer, baseball and football.

People might not like the initial idea of replacing grass with turf, but it’s easier to maintain and better to play on.

If it makes the playing field safer and benefits kids and adults alike for years to come, why not?