The New Nailhouse
The details for the new 47,000-square-foot athletic track and multi-sport field at Encinal High School, unveiled at the ribbon cutting ceremony on Friday, January 9, are nearly as beautiful as the facility itself:
- Synthetic turf–60 x 100 yards–for soccer, football, and lacrosse.
- Eight-lane all-weather, 400-meter track.
- Discus, high-jump, pole vault, jump pits, and shot put area.
- 1,200-seat bleachers with ADA accessibility, announcer’s booth, and public address system.
- LED field lighting with path and bleacher lighting.
- New fencing, flagpole, and relocated scoreboard.
[1]Designed by Quattrocchi Kwok Architects (QKA) and built by Bothman Construction, the new field was funded by Bond Measure B.
“Encinal High School’s new stadium is a source of pride for our students and the broader community,” Alameda Unified School District (AUSD) Superintendent Pasquale Scuderi [2] said in a press release. “We are looking forward to hosting many sporting events here and celebrating these state-of-the-art facilities. Thank you to the project team, and most importantly, the citizens of Alameda for their support of Measure B.”
The new field replaces what had been among the shoddiest fields athletes ever trod upon. Visit any bar in the West End and you’ll hear stories of stumbling in the mud, tripping from gopher holes, and dodging goose poop, all to catch the pass, dribble the soccer ball, and fling the lacrosse stick—not to mention cheerleaders trying to do their acrobatic miracles in soiled white sneakers. The countless hours AUSD maintenance staff spent trying to keep it playable and safe—gussying up the grass and smoothing the dirt—must have cost a small fortune.
[3]It was a horrible, miserable, terrible place for athletics—but my oh my, the athletes and their efforts were legendary. Emily Allegrotti kicking field goals as the first female Jet football player. Jonathan Brown playing both sides of the ball in 2008 as Encinal went undefeated and won the North Coast Section Championship. And myriad athletes racing around the Don Grant track coached by West End heroes Derrick and Juanita Lyons.
The coaches were among the many attendees at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new field. They and others were eager to share their memories of the old field:
Derek Lyons: “The people, seeing the crowds, bad or good, their seeing how great our school is, the opportunity to see what the other side of Alameda can bring. We don’t get enough love.”
Juanita Lyons: “The camaraderie that you get when you’re here, seeing the water, the calming effect, the beauty with the area, it’s amazing. There will be so many memories coming around with this.”
[4]Mike McMahon: “Attending the graduations of my three children in 2000, 2002, 2004 as a school board member.”
Teresa Tenorio: “When I was office manager and my son was coaching and we were winning—seven years in a row beating Alameda High!”
Mario Mariani, Encinal alum: “Having to practice on it. [My coach] used to kick my butt, but he helped me make it to the pros. From Encinal to Contra Costa College, to the University of New Mexico, to the Washington Redskins, then Canadian football.”
The field at EHS was also home to some very memorable, non-athletic moments. Before the Island Bowl in 2001, still shaking from the attack on the World Trade Center and the loss of Flight 93 on 9/11, the players from both teams met mid-field to embrace in a demonstration of brotherhood. Then there was the once-off experiment of having homecoming celebrated with a parade of floats on the track at halftime. The lighting was bad, the floats clumsy, no one was happy, it never happened again. And, of course, graduation celebrations have graced the field with friends and parents sitting in folding chairs, an aisle up the middle, where the seniors paraded in wearing school colors, mortar boards wobbling as they walked, only to later fling them skyward when told they were bona fide graduates.
[5]But even back then, before the new turf and track, this was a special scene. Not many fields share a shore, the east side of the bay meeting the area just beyond the field. Students wearing waders roamed in the water, where home and visiting fans could taste the salt air, and where flocks of seagulls flew near enough to check the score.
Congratulations to everyone at Jet Land for this overdue, stunning improvement to the beautiful campus. May many more athletes frolic in victory on the new field, cheered by fans finally feeling the respect they’ve long deserved, while sitting watching their kids play ball. As for the geese, sorry dudes.
Gene Kahane is the founder of the Foodbank Players [6], a lifelong teacher, and former Poet Laureate for the City of Alameda. Reach him at [email protected] [7]. His writing is collected at AlamedaPost.com/Gene-Kahane [8].