Portland's professional soccer team has been granted permission to replace the field at Fitzpatrick Stadium, which it will share with local school athletic teams.
The city of Portland agreed last fall to a five-year lease agreement for the pro team to use the field. A new amendment, which city councilors approved Monday night, will allow the Hearts of Pine soccer team to pay for the installation of a new field.
The new turf will be plain green, and it will no longer display the logo of the Portland High School bulldog mascot or have sewn-in lines that currently accommodate several sports to be played on the field. The Hearts of Pine, however, will pay to have the lines periodically painted and removed on the field to accommodate the school sports schedule.
The team's founder, Gabe Hoffman Johnson, said the existing field does not meet United Soccer League standards. The new field will be safer for everyone who uses it, he added.
"Portland schools and the city are benefitting with a new locker room, with a new football field goal post, with new lights, with new a press box that they can actually enjoy," Hoffman Johnson said. "And what we're proposing today is a new, safer better turf field."
But some students, parents and others said that Portland High School athletes would lose the feeling of playing on a home field if the bulldog logo is removed. Many said they felt left out of the pro team's plans to renovate Fitzpatrick Stadium, while others argued that the city of Portland is making concessions for another professional team to benefit from facilities that are meant to be community resources.
"We've seen an erosion in public trust with the Expo, with the naming rights of the Sea Dogs," said Portland resident Frank Gallagher. "Now we're going to take the mascot off the field?"
Ultimately, city councilors agreed to the lease amendment after several hours of public comment and debate. The team is scheduled to begin playing at Fitzpatrick Stadium this spring.
