Grass Field at Burbank Could be Paved Over

A grass field used for soccer and other sports at the soon-to-be-closed could be converted to a parking lot if a plan recommended by is approved.

The district's plan for the school includes relocated two preschools, a mental health program, and a non-profit to the campus (those plans are discussed further in ).

To accommodate those new facilities the school would need another 75 to 80 parking spots, according to Tom Selinske, who is chair of a subcommittee that discussed the project in a meeting on Tuesday.  If the spots are not added, it could result in additional street parking in the area, he said.

Paving over the field would cost about $100,000, according to the district's staff report.  Part of the field would be converted to a playground facility as well, according to the district's report, which can be viewed at right.

According to Selinske, the plan is not guaranteed to go through as it was originally presented in a May 24 board meeting.  At Tuesday's meeting, PUSD staff said it might be possible to minimize paving and use the area to connect existing parking areas which would be expanded.

Saving the area was also a discussed as a priority for several other board members at the May 24 meeting: Altadena resident and board member Kim Kenne called it "about the only green space anywhere" in the area.

Renatta Cooper, who also suggested that the area has a lack of green space, said that she does "not want to convert any grass to asphalt."

More details on what options might be possible will be presented at a on Monday at 7 p.m. at Burbank.  The board will vote on the plan at it's Tuesday meeting, the day after that meeting.