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Replacement of the bleachers is the first step of renovations to the football field at Doyle Field in Leominster and should begin sometime this fall. (SENTINEL & ENTERPRISE PHOTOS / SARAH BRITAIN)

LEOMINSTER -- Seniors on the Leominster High School football team have celebrated their final year on the Doyle Field gridiron for generations. But this year's team will play all of its games on the road because of the beginning stages of a long-term plan to reconstruct and modernize Doyle Field's athletic facilities. The work is expected to begin this fall with the replacement of the football field's original metal bleachers, installed in 1931. Today they sit empty, rusted and even falling off in certain sections. "We apologize to the seniors and parents," said Gil Donatelli, vice president of the Doyle Field Foundation.

Donatelli played all his home football games on Doyle Field as a member of the LHS Class of 1971,

"There's just no good time to get it done," he said of the project.

Chris Young, the high school's athletic director, said because the state has offered grant money toward the $900,000 project to install new bleachers, the plans must go forward now.

"It's inconvenient, but you take what they can give you," Young said of the state's requirements.

He added that Doyle Field is unique because it receives extensive use by the community and the high school.

The Leominster football team will play all its games on the road this year, with several "home" games scheduled at Gardner's football field, Young said.

The Doyle Field Foundation will need to raise another $250,000 to complete the first step of the project, which will include the bleachers placed into land behind the football bowl.

Spectators will be able to enter the bleachers from behind and walk down to their seats.

Ralph Caisse, president of the foundation, is confident the final amount will be raised and that football will return to Doyle Field by fall 2006.

"It's a temporary situation," said Caisse. "We'll be back on the field by next September."

Principal William Hart said he has heard concerns from some parents of football players.

"Anytime you're looking to upgrade your facilities, there's going to be a time when they're not useful," said Hart. "For the seniors that won't be able to play on Doyle Field, that's unfortunate. As a community, we appreciate their sacrifice."

Robert Salvatelli, City Council president, said updating the city's fields is worth shutting down the field for a year.

"It's historical," Salvatelli said of Doyle Field. "People from generation to generation have played sports there."

But he understands the concerns of some families of football players.

"That's certainly a shame," he said of the Blue Devils playing all their games outside of Leominster. "Unfortunately, at some point in these projects, someone has to suffer. There's a history of that kind of sacrifice."

Young said the new bleachers will hold about 5,700 fans and be handicapped accessible.

Young gathered Monday with Donatelli and Joe DeCarolis to reminisce about their playing days at Doyle and to encourage other former football players to donate to the Doyle Field Foundation.

Volunteers hope to privately raise another $150,000 in September to trigger a private donor's matching funds. Plans call for the bleacher project to begin in October.

"I'm confident that the more people know about the project, the more they will help," Young said.

The next step in the project will be to replace the football field's turf in the spring, but it is still unclear if the foundation will install synthetic or natural grass.
 
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