The proposed athletic fields at the former Crestmoor High School site have become a question of project costs and scope for San Bruno. A July 2026 staff report questioned whether the project could be financially sustainable.
The proposed project has undergone modifications.
Costs and Project Viability
The staff report raised concerns about whether the project is financially sustainable, putting its costs and financial future at the center of the council’s review.
The options under consideration were to move forward with the fields, scale back the plan, or shelve it indefinitely.
A Site With a Long, Layered History
The land has carried different uses for decades. The San Mateo Union High School District operated the campus from 1962 to 1980, before the site changed hands. The staff report describes community use of the grass fields, including by AYSO and Lowen soccer clubs, while the district operated the campus.
Toll Brothers plans to build 155 housing units on the land and dedicate parkland to the city. San Bruno’s current vision calls for eight striped, overlapping artificial-turf soccer fields for youth sports and recreation.
The fields are part of the approved development’s open-space plan, not a separate proposal on an unrelated parcel. In June 2024, San Bruno certified the project’s final environmental impact report and approved the subdivision, which includes 6.9 acres for the city. Of that, 5.3 acres are set aside for sports fields, with the rest for recreation-related uses such as paths and parking. The city’s project history and council materials outline those approvals.
The fields plan is accompanied by a related stormwater treatment basin, another component of the broader site development.
A Council Study Session on the Fields
At its July 28, 2026, study session, the City Council considered Crestmoor Fields and the project’s financial sustainability.
The July 28 council study-session packet included a July 2026 staff analysis of Crestmoor Fields.
The project has drawn outside support in the past. A $3.4 million San Bruno Community Foundation Strategic Grant is listed for Phase 1. The plan includes picnic areas and restrooms. The plan also includes parking and lighting.
An earlier city project page put the cost at $9.2 million to $11.2 million in 2023, before a stated 10 percent annual construction-inflation adjustment. Projected combined costs are $12 million to $13.4 million.
A Separate Turf-Cost Estimate
The verified comparison available here is from outside San Mateo County. A July 5, 2019, City of Denton staff report estimated that converting six existing softball fields at North Lakes Softball Field Complex to artificial turf would cost $5.4 million, or $900,000 per field. That conversion estimate is not a direct cost comparison with Crestmoor’s proposed eight overlapping soccer fields, and it does not establish Crestmoor’s maintenance or eventual replacement costs.
