Hansen Field Stadium Expansion

[kalm]

Western Illinois has a humble $10 million private funding campaign started for stadium improvements. If you look at the pictures below it sounds like they renovated the away side/student seating 10 years ago so this will be a new main grandstand, press box, and suites. Just another example (UNH, ISUr,) of a very similar school and program to us moving forward.

For $10 million, I'm guessing we could get at least get real close to placing the track elsewhere, moving the field, and put up taller and a little nicer erector style seating on the east side. At one point early on in the Gateway planning the student government was on board with funding their own section. If we could get them on board and give them 80% of the east grand stand (shorter walk for them too), we could probably afford a more permanent and nicer structure there. Our students did that with the Rec center and it sounds like that's how ISUr primarily funded their stadium improvements so it can be done.

Here's some positive comments from an ISUr fan's perspective on their recent renovation and the ancillary benefits (re: curb apppeal) it provides the greater university.

Congrats to WIU .. Lawson must be proud. Speakign from experience at ISU, renovating half the stadium made a big diffference both initiallty with fan interest, and in other less direct ways. Some of those dividends are immediate in terms of fan support .. people just like newer and nicer, and are more willing to show up to games .. simply improves the enthusiasm gap. But more importantly is the clear message it sends to coaches, players, recruits, donors, community, alumni, etc .. that WIU is committed to football. ISU wrestled with this exact same decision, and how to fund it .. in the end, we got it done largely thru student fees, which was controversial .. but we got it done. It's just one of those things that will keep paying dividends in many ways down the road. We spent 25m and have zero additional seating capacity if you go back a few years to when we had the erector set bleachers in south end zopne combined with the old eastside, which was an embarrasment sitting out front of campus on Main St for all the world to see driving thru town. But now we have much nicer face to Main St, much nicer seating and facilities, including suites, plus banquet rooms for both games and special events. It shows very well to recruits, donors, even new students.

Bottom line .. it helped us on many fronts. No substitute for winning, but a nice stadium sure helps.

http://www.anygivensaturday.com/showthread.php?189949-Western-Illinois-new-West-Side-of-Stadium-plans-unveiled

 

[clawman1]

Great post kalm. Not the grandios plan that Gateway was but much better than where we are now.
I'm sure if you kick in the first mil. that would kick start the campaign nicely!

 

[360Eag]

I'd definitely love it if the Inferno looked like that. Anything would be better than what we're currently dealing with.