Van-Far’s new track will be able to withstand all types of weather.

Many schools have these types of facilities for track and field, but the Van-Far School District signaled Tuesday its track and field team will have the facilities to match other schools. Superintendent John Fortney and school board members collectively cut the black ribbon at a ceremony held at the site of the new all-weather track that surrounds the new football field.

Fortney said on Tuesday the project, undertaken by Byrne and Jones, is “99 percent complete,” with minor fencing and drainage issues still needing to be addressed. It is the first all-weather track in the school’s history, Fortney said, as funding has gone toward other projects in the past, but recent success from Van-Far’s athletes convinced the district it was track and field’s turn.

“A lot of times, facility money was put in other places,” Fortney said. “At the time period, the numbers for the track program were not really big, but if you look at the history of the program, the school has won two track state championships within the last decade. So we have the athletes, and hopefully, this is the kind of thing that will allow us to bring some things back.”

Van-Far boys track and field won four straight district titles from 2015-18 and back-to-back state titles in 2017-18, with Josh Hodde coming away with the 110- and 300-meter hurdles Class 1 state championships in 2018. Back then, Hodde had to practice his events in the hallways of the high school since its previous clay track had been unusable for years.

Fortney said the old track was built in the 1970s and held too much water. Because the new track won’t have those issues, he said the plan is to host a meet in the spring as he recalls the students being excited for the facilities but wondering when is the earliest they could host.

“We’re going to make sure we have a small meet just to get our feet under us,” Fortney said. “Hopefully, within the next two years, the district will be putting in to host the district track meet or at the championship level. The facilities that we produced here with Byrne and Jones and with the money we got from (the Department of Natural Resources), it’s going to allow us to do that, which is what our community deserves.”

The bid for the project was approved back in November 2021, with a grant as part of the Land and Water Conservation Fund from the U.S. Department of the Interior covering approximately $304,000. The district covered the other $476,006, including $167,002 for field improvements, Fortney said. June 2020 Bond funds along with money from the district’s capital projects fund covered the district’s share of the cost for the project that broke ground in early spring.

Fortney said the track would even be available for use to the community during after-school hours, or when the school isn’t using it. He said this right now would be dawn to dusk.

“Some times of the year will be busier than others,” Fortney said. “Spring with track practice will shut the track down until around 6pm, but we will let the community know when it won't be available.”