A grass seed problem will keep the back field of Rochester Memorial School off limits to students until at least next year, much to the frustration of school officials.

On Thursday, Old Rochester Regional Facilities Manager Gene Jones informed the members of the Rochester School Committee that because the grass seed has not taken in the field, officials would have to wait until spring to take action to correct the problem.

The seed was planted by the Chicopee-based Mountain View Landscapes during the school's renovation project, which was completed last year.

Since then, the students have been kept off the field to prevent contact with the seed and to prevent further damage.

Gene Jones, Facilities Director for the Old Rochester Regional School District, said the seed was not properly planted.

“We don’t have the fields for the children,” Jones said. “We’re trying everything to make this work. I personally looked at it and I thought it was a terrible job.”

To date, Jones said the project managers of the school's renovation project have withheld payment to the contractor until the seed is properly set.

Annoyed by the delay, several of the School Committee members suggested finding another contractor. However, the contract requires that Mountain View be given a chance to fix the field, Jones said.

“We’re going into another year the kids are not on the fields,” said committee member Tina Rood.

“It is completely inappropriate for us not to have grounds for our children to play on,” said committee member Sharon Hartley.

If the project managers decided to hire a new contractor, Superintendent Doug White said that the field may prove costly.

“The issue is that the remaining money is not enough if we try to do this ourselves,” White said. “The project manager is trying to force the company to keep to its contract.”

Jones said he would report back to the School Committee with an update at the next meeting in February.