Palo Alto High School is well on its way to fulfilling the dreams of countless athletes who have passed through the district: installing lights for athletes to play under in football, track, and soccer.
The school board responded favorably to the initial introduction of the lighting project during its meeting last Tuesday.

I am astonished at the great obstacles that exist in this process. Having been exposed to the problem through my mother’s involvement, I can’t imagine why the lights need to pass through so many stages when so many people support it.

In accordance with District Policy IX C 7, the board must approve all capital improvements in excess of $50,000 (which this donation exceeds). The donors include both individuals with Paly students and Palo Alto based corporations. If the board votes to accept the funds, it would acquire the fiscal means to purchase equipment it could not otherwise afford. The lights will be district property and will be managed and operated accordingly.

The four 80-foot light poles, located at approximately the 15 yard lines, would provide enough light for both the field and the track at Hod Ray field. The design for lights has been reviewed by Musco Lighting Company, which is responsible for more than half of high school and college field lighting systems in California.

Both the Paly Sports Booster Club and the Athletic Communities Create Exceptional Leaders Foundation have voted to support the installation of the lights, although they did not contribute to the fundraising.

A great concern of the district is the reactions of the neighborhood surrounding Paly. In efforts to offer information and hear input, three community meetings have been held. Feedback has been mostly in support of the lights under the conditions that the problems of trash, parking, and traffic were addressed.

Neither the City nor the school has received any complaints directly following the night football game held Nov. 14. Light opposition has been posed at the board meeting, the main concern being traffic. The lighting proposal was mentioned at the City School Liason Committee meeting in February without strong opposition.

The lights will operate solely for athletic events and the amount of use will be kept to a minimum. However, no set limit has been established for the various sports that play at Hod Ray field.

Football games, track meets, soccer games, and practices are currently held on the field. frosh/soph football currently begins games on Thursday at 3:15 with varsity on Friday at 3:15. With lights, during the approximately five home games frosh/soph would play Friday at 5:15, followed by varsity at 7:30. Track meets currently start at 3:30. The later starts would reduce the amount of school athletes are forced to miss due to athletics.

Pushing back the starting times of these activities would greatly alleviate the traffic congestion experienced at Paly in the early evening. Previously, events would end between 5 and 6 p.m., which is peak traffic time along Churchill. Later events would allow time for the parking lot and congestion to clear out before spectators arrive. Although there would be traffic trickling in for JV games, potential traffic is minimal compared to the flood of vehicles that would normally be leaving varsity games at that time.

As captain of the football team, I believe I speak for everyone involved in the Paly football organization when I express the excitement and desire I feel regarding the lights. Although it sounds trite, the promise of lights further motivates us as athletes to work harder and achieve our goals. However, I was most impressed from the support received from those not affiliated with the athletics.

As football players, we understand there is a significant community aspect as well as the athlete enjoyment. During last year’s night game, the band performed, Palo Alto Pop Warner players were introduced, and the parents of all senior athletes were recognized. The community’s attendance, which drastically increased at the night game, would unite the community. Also, as young adults, the games will become more readily available to working parents, whose attendance means a great deal to us athletes.

According to Musco Lighting, new technology in this branch has been developed to reduce spillover lighting and concentrate the light beams on potential activities with minimal light pollution on the surroundings. The lights are "direct lighting" and are similar to the lights recently installed at Stanford University across El Camino.

Assembly and delivery of the lights, if approved, will take approximately four to six weeks on top of the two weeks necessary for installation. Operating costs are estimated at $11.20 per hour, which is allotted for in the donation.

This project does not take funds away from the current projects going on around Paly. The most prominent project remains the campaign for a new pool, where the Palo Alto Boosters Club seeks to raise roughly 1.5 million.

The field will be made available to Gunn football team but, according to Paly athletic director Earl Hansen, the Gunn administration has expressed their desire to play their home games on their own campus.

The lights would be a blessing to the Paly community and its athletes. High school is the only time during which night games can be enjoyed (as colleges play Saturday afternoons and very few athletes will continue their careers in college). Night games would round out the current high school experience at Paly, and would capture school spirit and brotherhood that could potentially exist.

The board is expected to make their decision at the board meeting in the next few weeks and I encourage an affirmative vote.