The City of Southlake's athletic field status page was last updated October 17, 2026. Its North Park section lists every entry as closed: lacrosse fields 1 through 3 and all nine flag-football subdivisions. Those fields are closed for construction, and they are being rebuilt to recover from heavy rain faster than grass can.
The work is the North Park Turf & Parking Improvements Project, a $6.355 million job that My Southlake News calls the final phase of the city's athletic field turf conversion. Community Impact reported that construction started September 21 and is expected to wrap up in early 2027. Once it's finished, all seven of the city's partner athletic associations will have artificial turf fields. This winter's closure is the last cost of that conversion, and families who play at North Park are the ones paying it.
Who loses a home field this season
According to the city, North Park was completed in September 2012. A city park profile describes three lighted multipurpose fields, walking trails, a large pond, open play space, a concession and restroom building and a gnome-themed playground. The same profile names Southlake Carroll Lacrosse Association games and the city's recreation flag football as the park's regular sports programs.
Earlier this year, when the city set aside money for the project, Community Impact listed the groups the construction would affect:
- Southlake Carroll Lacrosse Association
- Lady Dragon Lacrosse
- Dragon Youth Football
If your family plays in one of these groups, your fall and winter schedule depends on fields somewhere else in the city. Families with no one on a roster will mostly notice the walking route. My Southlake News reports that parts of the sidewalk loop around the park are closed during construction, and the city's project map marks two closed segments around fields 1 through 3.
Fourteen fields, built in three stages
North Park comes last because the other two big complexes are already done. In November 2024, Community Impact reported that turf installation had wrapped up at Bicentennial Park and Bob Jones Park. Here is the full scope, counting North Park's fields:
| Park | Fields converted to turf | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Bicentennial Park | Baseball fields 3, 5, 6 and 7 | Completed by November 2024 |
| Bob Jones Park | Softball fields 3 through 6 | Completed by November 2024 |
| Bob Jones Park | Multipurpose fields 4 through 6 | Completed by November 2024 |
| North Park | Fields 1 through 3 | Under construction, early 2027 target |
That's 11 fields already finished and 3 in progress, for 14 turf fields across three parks. North Park is the only one of the three where the conversion covers the whole lighted field complex instead of selected diamonds.
The 2024 Community Impact report quoted someone involved in the earlier installations who said the investment should mean fewer rainouts. This month, Community Services Director David Miller told Community Impact that turf has improved the look and playability of the fields and gives teams more chances to practice. The outlet also reported the city's view that turf lets play resume sooner after heavy rain and adds a significant amount of practice and game space.
What goes under the new surface
The turf itself is the visible part. Most of the cost and complexity is underneath it. My Southlake News says each North Park field gets a gravel base, a perimeter drainage system, blended infill and a shock pad. Community Impact, citing city documents, reports that the finished fields will absorb impact better than the NFL turf standard, with new chain-link fencing and safety netting rising above the north and south ends.
Drainage is what ties the field work to the city's rainout argument. A grass field with standing water stays closed until it dries out. A field built on gravel with drainage around its edges is designed to recover far faster. That's why the field status page matters less once North Park reopens. The page already runs on a daily schedule. City-run flag football gets updated at 2 p.m. on game days when conditions are questionable, and every field at every complex gets updated again by 4 p.m. for evening games and practices. With turf at North Park, rain is much less likely to change that afternoon update.
The project also covers the rest of the park. The scope includes drainage and fencing upgrades, sidewalk and ADA accessibility improvements, grading of the practice field and new landscaping.
152 parking spaces, aimed at game-day overflow
The second half of the project's name solves a problem anyone who has been to a crowded weekend game will know. The city is building a new lot with 152 spaces, plus lighting, drainage and landscaping. My Southlake News says it is meant to handle games and practices better and cut down on cars parked on the grass during high-attendance events.
The parking and the turf solve the same problem. Turf fields that host more games and practices bring more cars at more hours. The city is building the extra capacity alongside the fields, before that demand arrives.
The contractor has worked on a Southlake project like this before. North Rock Construction & Associates, LLC is building the North Park project and previously worked with the city on the Southlake Pickleball Complex. That complex, at 450 W. Southlake Blvd. inside Bicentennial Park, opened in February 2024 with eight courts plus a championship court. The whole North Park project is paid for through the city's Capital Improvements Program.
Using North Park between now and early 2027
The city says the park stays open during construction. Only the active work areas and parts of the sidewalk loop are off-limits, and park users are asked to follow posted signs. The construction zone on the city's map surrounds fields 1 through 3, so the pond, the playground and open areas outside that boundary are the parts of the park to plan around.
For a visit this season:
- Check the athletic field status page before driving over for anything on a roster. As of the October 17 update, North Park's lacrosse and flag-football fields were all listed as closed.
- Plan a walking route that avoids the field complex, since the two closed sidewalk segments sit along the construction zone around fields 1 through 3.
- Follow progress on the city's North Park Turf & Parking Improvements page. The city has said it will post milestones and progress updates there as work moves through each phase.
The completion date is an estimate for now. My Southlake News said in September that construction would run until early next year, and Community Impact's October report put the finish in early 2027. Neither source gives a specific reopening date. The conversion traces back to the city's Southlake 2035 Parks, Recreation & Open Space Master Plan, and North Park's three fields are the last work under that initiative.
Fields that drain, parking that keeps cars off the grass and parks that stay usable after a storm are part of what owning a home in Southlake looks like. If you live near North Park or anywhere in the Carroll corridor and wonder how your home compares in today's market, the Jeannie Anderson Group can walk you through it in person. Request a Luxury Home Valuation, and we'll prepare a clear, considered view of where your home stands.
