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LOGAN — Utah State University Vice President and Director of Athletics Scott Barnes announced Friday that proposed renovation plans for Romney Stadium have been formally approved by the USU Board of Trustees.
During the board meeting, USu athletics officials provided research data from the consulting firm Conventions, Sports and Leisure International that states renovation plans for Romney Stadium are financially feasible following its market and financial analysis. USU athletics officials also provided the board with initial design and program concepts for stadium renovations from VCBO Architects.
With the approval by the board, USU can now formulate a funding model to determine what dollars are available for the project.
Barnes said board approval is a significant first step with a lot of work still to do before the project gets off the ground.
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"Our objective is to formalize our revenue model to better understand the scope of the project we can fund," said Barnes. "Ultimately, I see two phases, and we need to answer the question of what potential funding might buy in phase one, in addition to new premium seating, club amenities and a press box structure. And, how soon can we get started on design."
Renovations to Romney Stadium will focus on improving the fan experience on both the east and west side of the stadium. On the west side, a new press box structure will be built that will include suites, club seats and loge boxes. The west concourse will also be renovated, including additional concession stands and public restrooms. Improvements on the east side could include additional concession offerings and restroom facilities along with enhanced fan traffic flow.
Renovations will also include new video boards on both the north and south ends of Romney Stadium, along with a new public address system. Expansion of Romney Stadium's seating capacity is also planned.
Romney Stadium was originally built in 1968 and has largely gone without any upgrades to the existing structure during its 46-year existence as the seating capacity has been altered twice; once in 1980 with the addition of approximately 10,000 seats to the south bowl, and again in 1997 as roughly 4,000 chair back seats were installed to bring the present capacity to 25,513.
In 2005, the south end zone area of Romney Stadium was renovated, providing improved concessions and restroom facilities as well as a widened concourse on the east side of the stadium. And in 2008, the three-story, 69,000 square foot Jim and Carol Laub Athletics-Academics Complex was completed in the north end zone, providing enhanced athletic and academic needs for all 16 of USU's varsity sports.
Currently, Romney Stadium is the smallest stadium in the Mountain West Conference, with Nevada's Mackey Stadium having the second-lowest total at 29,993 seats. Air Force has the largest facility, with Falcon Stadium holding 52,480 spectators.
