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2 instances where LUSC experienced an unanticipated late start to their permitted time. A separate issue was parking at the Diamond Middle School on Saturdays as that site is used by both LUSC (athletic fields) and the German School (school building) on that day. Mr. Clackson expressed that LUSC is willing to work collaboratively to come up with solutions and identified having the lights remain on later at night at Lincoln as one potential solution as this could increase playability by lighting additional turf fields. He also acknowledged the reality that going forward, the start time for the LUSC sessions may need to move from 5:30pm to 6:00pm. Naomi Martin, Lexington Public Schools Director of Athletics,responded by stating that LHS Athletics has a great, long-standing working relationship with the youth sports organizations in Lexington. Ms.Martin mentioned that LHS Athletics operates in a different model than youth sports due to outside and external factors such as bus shortages and the national shortage for officials (specifically field hockey,basketball,baseball, and lacrosse) as older individuals are stepping away as a result of the pandemic. With the later school start time, Ms.Martin added that there are no easy answers. The school day at Lexington High School now ends at 3:lOpm and other schools have been impacted significantly. Traffic on Route 2 and Route 128 at 3:30- 3:45pm is much different than it is at 2:45pm. Ms. Martin explained that teams often arrive at 4:30pm with games starting at 4:45pm. Varsity games consist of two 40-minute halves, two timeouts, and intermission. She added that most overlaps occurred at Lincoln 92 and not at the Center Track Field. While it would be difficult to come up with immediate solutions, Ms. Martin acknowledged that more lighted fields and a later light time would help the situation. Members of the Committee then had the opportunity to ask questions and make comments. Christian Boutwell asked if any thought had been given to shortening JV games. Ms. Martin replied that JV and freshman games consist of two 35-minute halves and taking away any playing time from high school athletes would be difficult, especially due to COVID. Mr.Boutwell emphasized that it will be important for the various organizations to put their thinking caps on when trying to come up with creative solutions that will help spread any negative impact out among the groups. Ms.Martin indicated that the scheduling alliances with the Dual County and Merrimack Valley Leagues have been in place for many years (for example, on the day that one league plays soccer, the other leagues play field hockey) and with games not ending until 8:30pm and students not returning home until 9:30pm,it presents a dynamic problem as they need to complete homework afterwards. Rick DeAngelis, Chair of the Recreation Committee, commended LUSC for building such a dynamic, successful program,which is evidenced by the 1,300-1,400 participants each season. He added that feeder programs are vibrant and essential for successful high school athletic programs. Mr. DeAngelis acknowledged that when scheduled back-to-back,it is inevitable that games will end late and the subsequent start times will be impacted. He also inquired about seeing a template of LUSC's weekly or monthly field schedule. Mr. Clackson reassured the Committee that LUSC is not looking to commandeer the fields and that LUSC is bringing this forward with the spirit of collaboration when coming up with solutions. He added that he thinks the Center Track Field is under-utilized since that field can remain lighted until 10:30pm and asked if more LHS Athletics night games could be held at the Center Track Field instead of Lincoln 92 since Lincoln 92 is the only field lined for 9v9 play (5th/6th grade)in town. Melissa Battite, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, made some remarks. The shortage of officials is an issue that needs to be addressed and identify whether or not this will be a trend moving forward. Ms. Battite reminded the Committee that the Town was guaranteed that the later school start time would not impact start times for youth sports. She added that when LHS Athletics uses the athletic fields,it is not charged except for the lights fees. This has a significant financial impact on the Department and affects its ability to recover costs. Ms. Battite stated that the lights at Lincoln 92 have been important to the entire Lexington community and 39 MARRETT ROAD,LEXINGTON,MASSACHUSETTS 02421