Thursday, May 24th, 2007
Coldwater football stadium to undergo major renovations
Village employees to donate most of the labor
By William Kincaid
COLDWATER - Cavalier Football Stadium will undergo a two-phase renovation project starting this summer.
During the regular school board meeting this week, Athletic Director Eric Goodwin updated members on the nearly $50,000 first phase, which will be mostly funded by the athletic boosters. Coldwater village employees will donate most of the labor.
The summer project will include a new centralized ticket booth, a new wrought iron fence along the front entrance and the removal of existing light poles in the parking lot.
Goodwin said the three light poles near the entrance will be removed by Seitz Electric of Coldwater. The existing power lines then will be buried and the parking lot lights will be relocated to the back of the press box.
Village employees will remove the damaged existing fence, which Goodwin said has somehow risen about 6 inches over the year, and install a new one from Lefeld Welding - costing the boosters between $15,000 and $17,000.
"That's a huge help labor wise," Superintendent Rich Seas said about the village's help.
Village employees also will pour new footers for the new fence and centralized ticket booth. The new building will be constructed by the school custodians and paid by the boosters. Goodwin did not state how much it would cost.
Goodwin said the custodians also will relocate the current ticket booths, which will be used for storage.
"They're still pretty stable buildings," he said.
The project also will include adding 23 handicap parking spots near the front entrance and a landscaped wall to cover the central light pole.
The school will pay $7,150 for the electric work and an undetermined amount for the eventual patching of the blacktop after construction. Goodwin said he is expecting state approval by June 8 and much of the work to be completed by the end of July.
The second phase involves purchasing a new electric transformer for the stadium lighting system.
Superintendent Rich Seas, who called the second phase an "animal," estimated it would cost the school anywhere from $70,000 to $80,000.
Goodwin said the electric system for the football field lights are around 35 to 38 years old and are not reliable. Each pole is powered by an attached "transformer can." If the power from one of the lights went out during a game, Goodwin said school officials may not be able to fix it.
Goodwin also said when the electric wires were installed decades ago, they were simply buried under the ground without any piping. Although the wires are all buried underground, he told the newspaper it is still a safety concern.
He also said the wires are in poor condition and are fragile.
Goodwin said when athletic boosters originally initiated the restoration process three years ago, Dayton Power & Light officials said a new transformer would cost the school $60,000 sans electrical lines and labor.
Now, however, the transform price has dropped to around $14,000, he said. That price does not include the electric lines or labor. If school officials could complete the project for $60,000, he said they would be sitting well.
Board member Jerry Meyer asked why this summer's project did not include both phases.
Goodwin replied the boosters and himself have been tied down for three years alone with the bidding process through DP&L. Also, he said because the second phase would be over $25,000, board members would be obligated to bid the project out.
Goodwin said he hopes to begin the second phase as soon as possible.
Boosters hope to build multipurpose facility:
COLDWATER - A long-term goal of the Coldwater Athletic Boosters is to construct a multipurpose facility for school athletes.
Athletic Director Eric Goodwin this week updated school board members on a two-phase renovation project that begin this summer on the Coldwater Football Stadium.
The second phase will involve purchasing a new electric transformer, which Goodwin said could be placed on the northeast side of the parking lot where the busses currently reside. Such a location also could power a newly constructed multipurpose athletic facility, Goodwin told the newspaper.
Such a facility, he said, could house new football locker rooms, batting cages for year-round softball and baseball hitting practice and an indoor track. Goodwin said the building would accommodate all sports except volleyball and basketball, which already have adequate facilities.
Goodwin said such a facility is a long-term goal of the boosters. He would like to see its construction in three years.
- William Kincaid
