The new Oak Harbor High School stadium facility should be a boon not only for the district and students but for the community, one resident said at last week’s school board meeting.

Paul Schroer, who lives above where the stadium will ultimately reside once construction is completed, told the board that he had heard the track would be off-limits to the public because of the fear of vandalism.

The rumor appears to be unfounded, although public access hours could be limited.

“I’ve lived up there since 2005,” Schroer said. “The only vandalism I’ve seen done to the track was actually a member of the football team, on the weekend drove a vehicle out on the football field and got stuck. It wasn’t caused by the people who use the track. It was caused by a high school member.”

Schroer pointed out the discrepancy in the district granting community access to the tennis courts and other high school facilities, but not the new stadium and track.

“At what point do you shut the public out and say, ‘No, you’re not going to use it,’ and then expect the school district to turn around and ask the public, ‘Can you fund the levies, can you fund the bonds?’”

The board took up the issue later in the meeting. Superintendent Dr. Rick Schulte said he did not plan to ban community use of the track and stadium, although the hours of access had not been determined.

“Our goal is to make it accessible to the community,” he said, adding that use of the facility would be contingent upon the public’s treatment of the stadium and track.

If access were granted, the existing gate could be left open, at least three feet wide for wheelchair access. The opening, however, would not preclude motorcycles or bikes from entering the field, which is a priority.

The problem will likely not lie in the amount of access, but in the demand for access by groups. Early risers using the track shouldn’t have a problem. People looking for a running facility in the mid-afternoon hours might be disappointed.

“Some people will have to use it less because some people are using it more,” Schulte said.