Selectmen Conditionally Approve Scoreboard at Ahrens

The 500 people who attended the Granby Memorial High football team’s season opener on Sept. 17 - a 40-29 loss to Enfield - had to keep track of the tally themselves because Ahrens Field doesn’t have a scoreboard.

If all goes well, however, spectators will have an easier time tracking the score at the Bears’ next home game, as the Board of Selectmen at its regular meeting on Monday evening conditionally approved the installation of, among other things, a temporary scoreboard at Ahrens.

Kevin Blake, co-president of the Granby Memorial High School Football Supporters, said during a presentation to the board that his group, which is currently in charge of funding the football program, had purchased a renovated, 10’ x 24’ scoreboard with money raised through donations.

The plan calls for a line to be installed to power the scoreboard, which would be built about 150 yards away from the Ahrens Field parking lot; the Football Supporters would reimburse the town for the expense of the scoreboard’s operation, Blake said.

In addition, Blake requested the following: permission to convert a room at the park’s pavilion to operate a concession stand (no cooking would take place there); the use of temporary rising platforms for coaches to stand on and monitor the games from above; and the installation of a sign acknowledging the football team’s sponsors along the treeline at the field.

The major issue was that, until Monday, the group had not yet obtained approval from the selectmen to make any of the requested changes at Ahrens. According to First Selectman John E. Adams, this wasn’t the first time that the board was not kept in the loop about decisions concerning the nascent high school football program.

“I just want to make clear that we’re supportive of the program, being a former high school football player myself,” Adams said. “It’s very inclusive for the kids playing. Originally, Ahrens was going to be used as a practice field and home games were going to be played in Simsbury.

"Then the schedule came out last year on the high school [athletics] website saying that home games would be played at Ahrens Park, something we found out about after the first game. We appreciate you coming here and updating us. It just would have been nice if a couple of months ago you let us know these things were planned for the fall.”

Selectmen Ronald Desrosiers and Scott Kuhnly agreed that advance notice would have given the board more time to properly consider the measures.

“We’re caught between a rock and a hard place here,” Desrosiers said. “If we properly deliberate this, then the season will be over.”

Blake, for his part, was contrite, stating that he and his fellow co-president, Brad Field, had only been selected to run the Football Supporters last month, leaving little time to get up to speed.

“I do apologize,” Blake said. “I had no idea of some of the things we were supposed to do.”

All parties involved agreed that the program would be better off if and when the football team’s games are moved to a permanent home field, preferably at the high school.

Ultimately, the selectmen voted 4-0 (Vice Chairman Sally King was not in attendance) to approve Blake’s requests, with the stipulation that they are run through the town manager and the proper town departments and services to ensure no one objects to the changes at the park.

The football team’s next home game is scheduled for Oct. 15 against Housatonic/Wamogo at 1 p.m.