When it comes to a synthetic turf field at Old Rochester Regional, a new organization isn't letting the grass grow under its feet.

T.U.R.F. (Tri-Town Unified Recreational Facilities, Inc.), an appropriately named grassroots group, is working to raise millions of dollars to overhaul the high school’s outdoor athletic facilities, starting with a new $1.2 million synthetic turf field.

The registered nonprofit, led by President Tom Flynn, includes members of all three communities in the tri-town and representatives of the ORR Booster Club, the Athletic Hall of Fame and high school and youth sports.

Phase one of the project will be focused on the multipurpose field – used by the football, soccer and field hockey teams as well as youth and adult leagues.

“To try to maintain a grass field that has that much use on it isn’t going to happen,” said Flynn.

According to the group, a turf field would result in fewer injuries and less maintenance.

Plus, it uses no pesticides, conserves hundreds of thousands of gallons of water every year and never gets muddy. But it also costs a heck of a lot of money up front, and this isn’t the first time it’s been tried.

Several years ago another group tried to raise money for synthetic fields and didn’t get very far.

“This is a little bit different,” said Flynn, who also runs the Old Rochester Youth Football and Cheerleading program. “We’re a little more targeted and a little more focused.”

In addition to the multipurpose field, the group wants to install a new track and add an artificial turf field in the center of it, update the tennis courts, rebuild the grass baseball fields and irrigate the training fields behind the stadium.

That would likely carry a whopping $3.5 million price tag, hence the initial focus on one field.

Flynn said T.U.R.F. is seeking private donations across the tri-town and recently held an event that raised $20 to 30,000 in one night.

This is just the beginning, but T.U.R.F. wants to see the field installed and ready to go by the beginning of the 2018 school year.

“It’s going to take a community effort,” said Flynn. “We’re not walking into this with rose-colored glasses. It’s going to take every private citizen and every business to come to the table.”

For more information, contact orrturf@gmail.com or call 508-863-0518.