The aftermath of the heavy early summer rains is still evident at Chanhassen.
The home-team bleachers and press box at the football field of the six-year-old school will sit empty this year, the result of soil erosion.
Last spring, school staffers noticed that soil was washing onto the track surrounding the field. Testing found that there was erosion on the hill upon which the bleacher and plaza, which includes the press box, are built, forcing closure of that side of the stadium.
The season-opening football game for the Storm, set for Sept. 12, has been moved to nearby Chaska High School.
The sites of the remaining home football games — Sept. 26 vs. Benilde-St. Margaret's; Oct. 2 vs. Bloomington Kennedy and Oct. 15 vs. Bloomington Jefferson — have yet to be determined.
Varsity football is the only sport affected by the closure. The soccer and JV football teams will still be able to use the field., but spectators will be forced to use the visitors side of the field.
More changes on the island
Six years after the heralded opening of its football field on Minneapolis' historic Nicollet Island, DeLaSalle is planning more renovations to its athletic facilities.
As part of a larger expansion project that is set to get underway, the school will be building new locker rooms with smaller shower areas and adding video facilities that will be shared by the athletic department and other departments within the school.
