Take the Kids: New pop-up soccer field in downtown Raleigh offers free play
There's a new place to play in downtown Raleigh, but it won't be there for long. As I wrote earlier this month, a pop-up soccer field first opened on City Plaza at 400 Fayetteville St. on July 15 and will be there until Aug. 15.
Posted — UpdatedThe field appears thanks to collaboration between Raleigh and The Bucy Foundation's Free Play Soccer initiative, which is working to raise $2.5 million over the next two years to build 25 soccer fields in local neighborhoods with no access to free-play spaces, according to a press release.
And it's really a pilot project that will help the city assess how the community will use it as it makes plans to open more soccer fields across the city as part of the initiative
"We want to test the whole scope about what the community likes," said Ken Hisler, Raleigh parks' assistant director.
The outdoor soccer field on City Plaza sits near the area that was once home to an outdoor ice rink during previosus winters. It's open to the public on weekdays and offers some special events on the weekends, including adult and corporate league play. Friday evenings are reserved for kids with sessions for kindergartners to second graders from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. and third graders to fifth graders from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.
- 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 4 p.m.. to 6 p.m., Mondays
- 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesdays
- 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Wednesdays
- 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Thursdays
- 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Fridays
Parents will be glad to know that it's completely surrounded by a wall so you don't have to worry about your kid running into traffic to chase after a ball. I'm told there will be balls on hand, but it's probably worth bringing your own if you have one.
This all foreshadows plans to build more soccer fields in underserved parts of Raleigh. Already, Raleigh officials hope to open two more fields through the Bucy initiative at Brentwood and Peach Road parks. They could open as soon as this winter, Hisler said.
These "fields" will look different than typical soccer pitches. At Peach Road, they'll take over an underused basketball court. And at Brentwood, they'll convert two tennis courts into two fields.
Kids won't play on grass, but concrete with an acrylic finish. In reality, they'll be more like futsal courts, a soccer-like game that is played on a hard court. As a longtime soccer mom, I can tell you that futsal offers a fast game and lots of opportunity to grow skills and footwork. Hisler said plans call for developing youth and adult leagues at the courts, based on community interests.
As the city continues to look for opportunities for additional fields after the first two, it could use the pop-up court in downtown Raleigh to test locations.
"This is a pilot," he said.
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