High Performance Natural Grass Fields (Phase 1)

  • Project typeParks
  • Project value$150,000
  • Completion DateSeptember 30, 2027

Project Background

At their January 12, 2026 meeting, following deliberation on the Turf Study (insert link to the Turf Study page), the Palo Alto City Council directed staff to 1.) Pursue a natural grass pilot project to enhance playability and durability and 2.) Continue to explore opportunities to transition from synthetic turf at Cubberley.

This project provides funding to evaluate the performance, durability, and seasonal availability of natural grass fields through a phased pilot program. Phase 1 includes a citywide review of athletic field maintenance practices, an optimized turf maintenance plan, and enhanced maintenance pilot project, and a capital feasibility analysis for Cubberley and Greer fields.

Primary Objective: Determine whether targeted investment in natural grass fields can increase usable field hours, improve field conditions, and reduce reliance on synthetic turf.

Results of Phase 1 will be used to inform capital planning for the upcoming synthetic turf replacement project at Cubberley, long-term athletic field operations and maintenance strategies, and will inform a potential Phase II of the pilot, pending City Council consideration, to construct high-performing natural grass fields and to continue investments in enhanced field maintenance.

Timeline

Phase 1

Assessment of Athletic Field Conditions and Maintenance Practices (Complete)

Under the guidance of an agronomist, the city conducted a comprehensive evaluation of selected natural grass athletic fields at Greer and Cubberly on May 15, 2026, including measurements of turfgrass cover, weed cover, surface hardness (Gmax), soil moisture, infiltration rate, surface planarity, rooting characteristics, soil physical properties, and plant nutrient status. These evaluations established objective baseline conditions from which future improvements can be measured and provided the technical basis for development of an optimized maintenance program and initial pilot project recommendations. 

Optimized Turf Maintenance Plan Recommendations (95% Complete)

The recommendations for an Optimized Turf Maintenance Plan build directly upon the findings of the assessment by providing site-specific maintenance strategies for both sand-amended and native-soil athletic fields that align with the city’s sustainability goals. This establishes a science-based framework for evaluating whether enhanced, organic turf maintenance practices can improve field quality, increase player safety, extend seasonal availability, and support more efficient long-term management of the City's athletic field system.

Enhanced Maintenance Pilot Project

August 2026 through July 2027

The pilot is intended to determine whether increased maintenance inputs can improve field quality and safety, increase turfgrass density and carrying capacity, reduce weed encroachment, shorten the winter closure period, and increase winter play on selected natural grass fields. In parallel, City staff will track the additional labor, materials, and associated costs required to implement the enhanced maintenance program along with user feedback. Together, the agronomic, operational, and cost findings will provide the City Council with a basis for evaluating the benefits and costs of enhanced natural grass field maintenance, including the extent to which the program could increase winter availability of natural grass fields and potentially offset winter demand on synthetic turf fields.

A 12-month controlled Pilot study has been developed for selected natural grass fields at Greer and Cubberley to determine if enhanced maintenance using an organic field maintenance program can improve:

  • Playability
  • Durability
  • Surface Safety
  • Overall turfgrass quality
  • Seasonal Field Availability

The Pilot Project includes staff training on data collection and continued support from a professional agronomist over the course of 12 months. Progress reports via Ad-hoc updates, PRC departmental reports, and agendized business items will be presented to the Parks and Recreation Commission (PRC) throughout the fiscal year. The next agendized update is scheduled for the November 2026 PRC Meeting. A final report on the effectiveness of enhanced maintenance will be completed by September 30th, 2027.

Capital Feasibility Analysis for Greer and Cubberley

Over the course of Fiscal Year 2027, the City will conduct an analysis to determine feasibility and costs for constructing a high-performance natural grass field at the Cubberley Synthetic Turf field that is currently scheduled for replacement of the synthetic turf in 2028 and renovating the larger natural grass fields 1 and 2 at Greer Park to enhance performance.  Initial findings on feasibility for these potential capital projects is planned to be presented to the PRC in December, 2026 with following steps to be determined based on PRC and Community Feedback.

Feasibility and costs of these potential projects in conjunction with takeaways from the enhanced maintenance pilot will aid City Council in assessing the effectiveness, operational impacts on field availability, and costs of targeted investments prior to committing to a second phase of the pilot consisting of large-scale field renovations or conversions.

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