SYRACUSE -- As President of the Fowler High School Booster Club, Jim Freeman is calling upon people on Syracuse's west side to rally on behalf of the Fowler High School athletic fields. Freeman says school officials have been told the fields will not be upgraded, but rather repaired as part of the Joint School Construction project. Freeman says Fowler was promised new athletic fields on a par with the fields already in place at Henninger, Nottingham and Corcoran High Schools.
Christine Fix, spokesperson for the Joint School Construction Board, confirms that Gilbane Construction has informed the JSCB that there is not enough money to replace the athletic fields, but she says "no one has abandoned" that part of the project. Fix says the JSCB is looking for other funding sources and remains committed to new athletic fields at Fowler.
Student athletes Chris Gilkes and Marliss Stroman say the football field is so "bumpy" it is hazardous. The track surrounding the football field has been condemned for the past eight years. The wooden bleachers are deteriorating and the baseball field is often flooded at Fowler. Gilkes and Stroman feel Fowler deserves the same type of facilities as the other high schools.
Superintendent Dan Lowengard says it's "premature" to say what will happen to the athletic fields. Lowengard says the JSCB has directed the architects on the $42 million dollar renovation of Fowler to come up with a plan that includes new fields. He says if there's still not enough money, the district will find some other way.
State Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli, who secured state funding for the upgrades at the other high schools, says he too is committed to new facilities at Fowler. Magnarelli promises he and school officials will find a way to fund the project.
