WVU stadium upgrades to be complete in time for season

“The fan amenities that people are now used to in modern stadiums just aren’t there,” said Michael Fragale, West Virginia University assistant athletic director. “We see the crowded concourses and concession stand lines. Our fans’ concerns don’t fall on deaf ears, but you have to have the money to take care of them.”

The university received a bond to pay for the renovations and upgrades, and commissioned P.J. Dick and the Hunt Construction Group to do the work, which comes with a price tag of between $50 million and $55 million.

“That’s a lot of money to me,” Fragale said. “However, you could spend $40 million on an athletic structure, and the general public wouldn’t even know you spent it. Pro stadiums today cost about $800 million.

“We have a self-sustaining department at WVU, so this is a big commitment, and a lot of money, but it’s an investment for our future.”

The construction began last summer and crews worked through the football season on the east side of the stadium.

“Two days prior to each game the site transformation would begin,” said Jeremy Meadway, P.J. Dick project manager and WVU alumnus. “While this differs from typical construction practices, the project was set up from the beginning to accommodate the ongoing football operations. The first season was successful from both aspects — fan experience and construction progress.”

The focus of the construction is upgrading the fan experience.

“Seating for 60,000 seems to be adequate,” Fragale said. “However, the restrooms aren’t sufficient, and we need more concession stands to eliminate those long lines, as well as a wider concourse area so fans can move around comfortably.”

The construction began on the stadium’s east side, and will be complete in time for the 2016 season. Late this summer work will begin on the west side of the stadium and should be finished by football season 2017.

In addition to the common area upgrades, the field boxes on both sides of the stadium will be renovated with new seats, television sets and heaters.

“That particular experience will be upgraded, but it is not tied to the east and west side expansions,” Fragale said. “Before football season this year we hope to have the boxes on both sides done.”

Fragale said pricing for Mountaineer football season tickets will remain the same, with the exception of the field boxes. Those will see a slight price bump and will cost between $1,300 and $1,500 a seat, depending upon the yard line location.

Mother Nature, with her sometimes quirky ways, has done her part to encourage improvements at the stadium. Pyrite, or fool’s gold, was found under the concession stand areas, and that necessitated attention to those spaces.

“Soil conditions vary from project to project,” Meadway said. “Design engineers implemented a solution to remediate the soil conditions.”

Pyrite is a nuisance that comes with the area’s rich coal seams.

“Pyrite is an iron sulfur mineral,” said Helen Lang, WVU associate professor of geology. “When it gets wet it turns into sulfuric acid, which is a strong acid. Over the years, this can damage and crack cement. Pyrite is the orange powder you see around the rocks and in streams around abandoned coal mines.”

Although some Mountaineer Fans may be eager for entirely new digs, Fragale says he does not see that happening in the foreseeable future.

“You would need about $400 million to build a new football stadium,” Fragale said. “That is just the starting figure. We would not be investing as much money as we are if we were going to build a new stadium. What we are doing is a good investment because our stadium is 36 years old andstill structurally sound.”