ork continues on the track and field at Barron Stadium, which is scheduled to have its artificial turf down in time for high school football in August.

Assistant City Manager Sammy Rich said work to strip the track to the original asphalt has gone well, with a good base for re-grading the track’s surface and adding an eighth lane.

“We held our breath in and were hoping it was in good shape, and we got lucky,” he said. “It could have been a very costly addition to the project.”

Rich said because of the eighth-lane addition, a row of seats from the home and visitors side had to be removed and retrofitted.

He said future plans will likely include additional seating placed on each side of the visitor’s seating section to make up for the lost seats.

“That will likely come in the second phase of the project,” he said.

Work to improve drainage conditions on the field and smooth the surface are also going forward. Rich said the center of the field is already two feet lower than the original surface.

“Hopefully we’ll have something the community can really be proud of come August,” Rich said.

Work also continues on the new levee gate system on Second Avenue.

Public Services Director Kirk Milam said concrete is being poured for the walls of the levee gate, due to be installed before construction is completed at the end of June.

“Next week they’ll be working toward constructing the bridge between the two walls on the track,” Milam said. “They have a lot to accomplish in another month, so we’re just watching that carefully.”

A 2009 special purpose, local option sales tax package approved by voters contains $3,369,000 for the stadium project. The 2006 SPLOST package contained $1,955,000 to replace the gate and relocate the Heritage Park access point.