Two fields sit down to the east of Arcata High School and Greenwood Cemetery. On the east of these two fields there lies the Arcata Skate Park. Directly on the South side, there are many apartments. The fields, a baseball and football field, were products of a recent project developed by the school district.
The football field is surrounded by the state-of-the-art James Washington Track, named after legendary track and field and cross country coach, James Washington. It’s no secret that the track was the main focus of the project, being established along with the football field inside, and the baseball field directly to the west.
The football field and track feature an advanced water drainage system. The old facilities were notorious for poor drainage, leading to flooding and a very muddy environment.
The entire project had a budget of 9.5 million dollars made up of bond funds. Donations and taxpayer money were added on top of that to help complete the project. This project allows boys and girls soccer, along with varsity baseball to play home games on campus on these new fields. But one issue stands out like a sore thumb; the football team still has to play their home games on the McKinleyville High School football field, recently renamed the Northern Humboldt Union High School Field to include Arcata.
“I feel like it’s unfair to us,” senior running back Alex Greenway said. “It’s my senior year and I feel like we should be able to play in front of all these amazing people at Arcata High.”
Most high school football games are played at nighttime, so lights are needed for a game to take place. Arcata High’s field does not have lights or the bleacher space to hold a game. The reason for there being no lights is because of the large amount of apartments directly next to the field. Residents do not want the bright lights right next to their homes and lights would conflict with City of Arcata zoning.
A possible solution would be playing day games on Saturdays. “Me personally, I’d be playing games down there during the day,” long-time baseball and girls golf coach Troy Ghisetti said. However, bleacher space is an issue. In the current layout, only one side of the field has paved cement, the other side is a grassy slope with an excess of trees and bushes. This allows for only two small sets of bleachers, which are not enough to hold a football game.
During the Varsity baseball team’s 2023 NCS championship run, during the NCS semifinal game at home vs. Del Norte, bleachers had to be moved from the little league field in Arcata to meet seating criteria.
Another pressing issue is parking space in the fields. The parking lot directly next to the football field is relatively small, and it is made up of dirt and small rocks. For comparison, when games are held at McKinleyville High, the very large parking space is usually completely filled for the varsity game. Spectators could park at the gymnasium, or in front of the tennis courts if there is not an event already taking place up there. If this is the compromise, then spectators would have to walk behind the baseball field, on a thin, muddy, and bushy “trail” to the football field.
With this big of a project, money is super important. Ghisetti described the amount of money accessible to make the fields as of a high standard as possible as simply “not enough.” For baseball, there is an “Arcata High Baseball fund” available to raise as much money as possible. With other expenses such as transportation, lodging, and gear, there is little money left over to go to the field. Ghisetti hopes to implement a roof over the batting cages so that during the excess rain that Humboldt receives, the baseball team will have a dry and comfortable place to practice.
There are still many benefits brought by this project. Both girls and boys soccer play home games on campus.
“I enjoy that, I don’t have to drive as far to home games,” senior soccer player Daniel Davidson said.
The lower fields are not in bad condition at all. Custodians and coaches take very good care of them. Compared to what Arcata High had before this project, we have seen a vast improvement.
The track is one of the nicest if not the nicest in the county, and with some slight advancements, Arcata High could have some of the nicest sports facilities around.
