PORTLAND, Oregon — Portland Public Schools (PPS) and Portland Parks & Recreation (PP&R) have reached a tentative agreement on improvements and public access to Grant High School's track and sports fields.
PP&R had been negotiating with PPS for months. Student athletes haven't been able to use the Grant Bowl this year due to safety concerns after a series of failed tests, so the football and soccer teams have traveled to other fields across Portland for games.
Portland Parks provided some details about the tentative agreement, which was announced Friday morning. If the agreement is approved, PPS will exclusively handle permitting of the upper and lower fields for "consistency and clarity," PP&R said. The school district will lease the Grant Bowl, track and upper sports fields from PP&R, while PPS will be responsible for renovations and maintenance. The field will be available to the public for "1,200 hours of non-district hours," and the track will continue to be generally open to the public.
Last fall, PP&R provided a permit to PPS to start replacing the Grant Bowl turf. PP&R said the project is underway.
The Grant Bowl was installed in September 2013 with an eight to 10-year expected lifespan. Last year, an outside firm tested the safety of the field, and it failed two tests. Portland Parks then added more crumb rubber to improve cushioning, but in May 2023, the field failed a third test.
"This is a win for the neighborhood, Grant High School community and for community sports users," said Portland City Commissioner Dan Ryan, referring to the tentative agreement. "PPS and PP&R teams have developed an agreement to better serve everyone in our community."
The PPS Board is expected to vote on the tentative agreement on Feb. 20.