Penn State Plans $7.5 Million in Football Renovations
Penn State plans a $7.5 million renovation of its football practice fields at the Lasch Football Building, the next phase of a continuing facilities overhaul.
The Penn State Board if Trustees’ Committee on Finance, Business and Capital Planning advanced the proposal Thursday. The full board will vote Friday whether to approve debt financing for the project, which won’t exceed $7.5 million, according to the proposal.
The renovation will include "various practice and support equipment and infrastructure," according to the agenda for the February trustees meeting.
The agenda cites several plans for the renovation:
- A permanent video board and sound system for the outdoor practice fields
- Play clocks, a goal post and netting for the adjacent turf field
- A videoboard, sound system and cameras for the Holuba Hall indoor facility
The Holuba Hall renovations will benefit multiple teams that share limited practice time in the facility, the athletic department said. The architectural firm HOK of Philadelphia will design the renovations. HOK recently completed a $48.3 million renovation of the Lasch Football Building that included an 18,000-square-foot expansion to the weight room.
Next up for Penn State is a renovation plan for Beaver Stadium. Athletic Director Patrick Kraft said in December that the department was "very close" to presenting a plan to the Board of Trustees.
Beaver Stadium is not listed on the board's agenda this week. Before the Rose Bowl, Kraft said that the university has conducted 19 studies regarding the future of Beaver Stadium and should reach a consensus soon.
"I make no bones about it: I love this building," Kraft said. "I love coming in this building, I love the history of this building. When I walk the parking lots and I talk to people about having generations of memories in the building, I want to make this building better, and we have to do that.
"We’re very close. All the data is there. Now it’s figuring out the financial models, how it would work, what’s the recommendation. So we’re close."
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