By Sara Beth Williams–
The San Juan Unified School District kicked off a long-awaited modernization project with a groundbreaking ceremony on McArthur Field earlier this week.
The May 20 ceremony was attended by hundreds of students, community members, Citrus Heights city staff, regional and state representatives, and San Juan Unified School District board staff and trustees, including Board President Ben Avey, Board Vice President Tanya Kravchuk, and board members Nick Bloise and Pam Costa.
Amid the backdrop of a field already stripped of its grass, with heavy construction equipment waiting, Avey spoke of how the San Juan High School field was once the “pride of the district”, and how his high school football team, like many others, would utilize San Juan’s field for home games before their own football stadiums were constructed.
“This was all of our stadium. But as time went on, as other schools began to catch up and build their own stadiums and build out their own programs, this stadium fell behind,” Avey told a full crowd of students, staff, and dignitaries. “But today, we end that. Today we bring back San Juan High as the pride of San Juan Unified.”
New side-by-side aerial images shared in a district newsletter show the previous condition of the stadium, with dirt track surrounding a grass field, and an artist rendering of the upgraded facility, complete with a new track and field, and painted turf. Avey said the new track and field will now be able to be utilized by other sports teams along with the football team.
San Juan Unified School District Superintendent Melissa Bassanelli said the school is the “namesake” of the district and added that officials are “extremely excited” and proud of the project.
San Juan High School football coach Otis Washington told The Sentinel he plans to continue coaching and that the football team will play home games at Mesa Verde next year while the stadium is being constructed. Washington also said that for the first time in several years, San Juan will have a junior varsity team, along with a smaller varsity team with eight starting players instead of 11. The goal, Washington said, is to rebuild the program and allow the younger freshman and sophomore players to gain experience playing against students their own age instead of against seniors who could be four to five years older.
Along with 21st-century upgrades to McArthur Field, the project will also encompass adding two new tennis courts and a newly constructed ticket booth, concession area, and restroom building. The modernization project is being funded by the previous Measure P, which was passed by the community in 2016, according to the district.
Related: Measure P passed. What will it mean for Citrus Heights schools? – Citrus Heights Sentinel
San Juan Unified School District Director of Communication Raj Rai said planning for the stadium modernization began in 2022, and the construction project was recently approved at the February Board of Education meeting.
The track and field were originally constructed over 75 years ago back in 1949; the press box with bleachers was added in 1950, and lights were added in 1984, San Juan Unified School District Director of Communication Raj Rai said. ADA improvements were the last major updates made to the stadium in 2008, which included an ADA-compliant ramp, parking stalls, bleacher seats and a concession serving window.
With the passage of another facilities bond measure in 2024, the district also has other updates planned for the high school, including upgrades to San Juan High School’s science classrooms to support 21st-century learning.
Following the groundbreaking ceremony, construction on the stadium is expected to take a little over a year.
