Back in August, Clemson athletic director Dan Radakovich told The Clemson Insider the athletic department was turning its primary focus from a facilities upgrade standpoint to Memorial Stadium. On Thursday, it will be Clemson University’s Board of Trustees turn to get the process rolling.
The BOT’s Finance and Facilities Committee is expected to approve a Phase I Capital Project to Memorial Stadium as the board beings its regular quarterly meetings in Clemson. If the the Finance and Facilities Committee approves Phase 1, then it will go to the full board for approval on Friday.
“I think basketball is in a pretty good spot because we duck tailed both of those together, practice and the competition,” Radakovich said to TCI back in August. “But baseball and football probably have (to be improved) … football will be first because of the sheer revenue it can drive, but we are not going to forget about what might be the next step as it associates with baseball.”
As first reported by the Seneca Journal Wednesday morning and confirmed by TCI, the Finance and Facilities Committee will discuss five areas of improving Memorial Stadium:
- Adding premium seating areas and club spaces.
- ADA accessibility
- Fan Experience upgrades, such as a new video board, sound system and LED lighting.
- Parking lot enhancements
- Renovations to the football team’s locker room
The total cost of Phase 1 design is expected to be just over $1 million, which will be funded by private gifts. As for the total cost of the entire renovations to Memorial Stadium, it is estimated to be around $68.7 million.
Completion for the total project is scheduled for the summer of 2021.
Phase 2 approvals should be anticipated for approval at the BOT’s July quarterly meeting and then construction to Memorial Stadium will likely begin after the 2020 season with expected completion before the Tigers’ 2021 season opener.
This is the first major upgrade to Memorial Stadium since 2015 when the school added the current video boards and ribbon boards as well as upgraded the President’s box, club seating and the press box areas.
During his time as Clemson’s athletic director, which began in 2013, Radakovich has led the charge in upgrading Clemson’s facilities. He helped push the project for the Allen Reeves Football Complex, the rebuild of Littlejohn Coliseum as well as the new operation facilities for both men’s and women’s basketball, a new operations facility for baseball, a state-of-the-art tennis complex with new operation centers for both the men’s and women’s teams, new operations center for IPTAY, which will house the ticket office as well, a state-of-the-are softball stadium with the program’s operation center located inside, renovations to the Jervey and McFadden Athletic Offices and soon the men’s and women’s soccer operations facility will begin construction.
“When I got here in 2013 and I took a little time to see the overall facility needs, and certainly baseball was there, along with football, tennis and some of the other facilities we have been able to put here…IPTAY, soccer and certainly softball. So, we have kind of hit everybody in this last five-year kind of go around,” Radakovich said. “Now we need to go back and see where some of the areas are that can really help us drive revenue.”
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