The Westport Board of Education tonight takes up the controversial issue of lights for the Staples High School football field.
The item is on the 8 p.m. meeting agenda. Members will decide whether to ask the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission for permission to erect the lights.
The lights issue has been a controversial one for the town. An effort several years ago to erect the lights was turned down by town officials after protests from neighbors.
This year’s football team made its way to the state finals and had to play a semi-final night contest in neighboring Norwalk because of the lack of lights at home.
Last year, the Wreckers hosted Masuk High School in the first round of the Class MM playoffs and they were able to do so because temporary lights were installed at the Staples field.
However, installing temporary lights was expensive proposition—about $18,000 had to be raised from private sources for the contest.
Support for installation of the lights has been growing. In addition to school officials and parents, Selectman John Izzo, a Republican, has made the issue a top priority.
Of the 18 schools in the Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference (FCIAC), 12 have lights. With the addition of Fairfield’s Ludlowe High School next year, 13 out of 19 schools will have lights.
