Brad Jorgensen, Chair of the Carroll Stadium Committee, provided an overview of his most recent visit with architects from FRK Architects in Des Moines to the rest of the committee at Tuesday morning’s meeting. FRK has assessed the current stadium and identified some of the issues and options the committee would need to address before moving forward in the design process. The initial idea with newer stadiums is to build a concession and restroom area on the curve of the track, for instance on the north or south sides of the Carroll stadium. But being landlocked has created a tight space in those areas.
The cost for each additional seat is estimated at $150, so adding more seats does add much more in cost. The committee is doing additional research on attendance at both Carroll and Kuemper games to more accurately estimate the seating needs. Jorgensen added that the space under the bleachers would not be a “traditional” locker room. It would be an open space with benches and some places to hang items on the wall with some shower stalls for teams to use after a game. Many of the new stadiums also incorporate a small space for officials and other workers to use before and after events. What goes in underneath and the space available will obviously be impacted by the decisions made on the size of the stands. Jorgensen said the committee came into this with open minds, but some ideas of saving aspects of the 50+ year old structure are not really financially feasible with only about $100,000 difference between building new and refurbishing.
Jorgensen added when you are looking at a roughly $4 to $6 million dollar project, that $100,000 doesn’t go very far. The committee wants to look more at the longevity, from a 40 or 50 year standpoint and the best use of the funds. The track is one area that Jorgensen said would have to be addressed first for safety reasons. The committee will be back in contact with FRK to keep things moving forward toward the design process and they will also be contacting the city before developing initial plans.
FRK has designed several stadiums in Iowa for districts similar in size and attendance and the committee will be relying on their expertise in the coming weeks, with a goal of having a design ready to go to the Carroll Community School District Board of Education this fall. If a bond vote is necessary, which Jorgensen said is likely, plan presentations in the fall would allow for voting in December, February or in the spring at some other time. The other goal is to have renderings available for the public to review and provide input on at the fall school open houses, the football games and other public gatherings. The Carroll Stadium committee’s next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday evening, July 12.
