School board approves Del City stadium renovation
The Mid-Del School Board Monday night approved a $6.2 million renovation of Del City High School’s Robert Kalsu Stadium. (Provided photo)
District officials preview plans for Midwest City stadium project
By Jeff Harrison
Managing Editor
Mid-Del School Board members Monday night approved a $6.2 million renovation of Del City High School’s Robert Kalsu Stadium and previewed a similar proposal for Midwest City High School’s Rose Field during their monthly meeting.
The Del City stadium project includes new home bleachers, ticket office, concession stands, restrooms and upgrades to the locker rooms, press box and facade.
Even more changes are planned for Midwest City. The proposal, which will be considered by the board next month, includes new home and visitor seating, a new locker room and wellness building, and new concessions, ticket offices, and restrooms.
Both projects will include additional space for future expansion of the running tracks. The district plans to widen the tracks to eight lanes from the current seven lanes. The OSSAA requires eight lanes to host regional and state meets.
LeRoy Porter, board member, was concerned about how changes to the track would affect the elevation of the bleachers. Wilson said the bleachers will stay at about the same height, but will be moved back about 5 feet.
“The bleachers will be set back about 5 feet off the track and set everything else back to accommodate for that future project,” said Kahle Wilson with Design Architects Plus.
The stadium renovations are funded through a $130 million bond issue that was passed in 2017. The bond issue includes improvements for all three high school stadiums, as well as other transportation, facility and materials needs in the district.
The board approved a $4 million project for Carl Albert’s Jim Harris Stadium last month. They approved the Del City stadium project Monday night and are expected to vote on the Midwest City proposal in December.
Mike Bryan, executive director of operation for the district, said all three football field projects will begin next month. Carl Albert’s is expected to be completed before the 2019 football season. Construction at Del City and Midwest City will take longer, but both schools will still be able to use the facilities next fall, Bryan said.
“There won’t be in any interruptions at Carl Albert but the others will run into next football season,” Bryan said. “We’ll have to make arrangements with construction, but we will still be able to use the field.”
The district will also replace the turf at all three high schools following construction.
Robert Kalsu Stadium
At Del City, the district plans to replace nearly all of the home bleachers. The center portion of the existing bleachers and press box will remain. The rest of the concrete bleachers will be removed and replaced with aluminum bleachers. New concessions, ticket offices, restrooms and storage will be added underneath the home bleachers. A new façade and fencing will be added around the stadium.
“We’ll keep the center part of the home bleachers, the press box and everything that’s integral to the structure of the press box,” Bryan said. “And we’ll make some cosmetic upgrades to the press box with the windows and flooring.”
The visitor seating area and locker rooms will stay the same. A new building for tickets, concessions and restrooms and additional locker rooms will be added on the southwest corner of the stadium.
Improvements are also planned for the home locker room. The current building will expanded for a new weight room. The existing weight room will be converted into a media room.
Rose Field
District officials also outlined plans for Rose Field during Monday’s school board meeting.
The home and visitors seating area will be nearly replaced. The center portion of the existing bleachers and press box will remain, similar to plans for Del City. The rest of the existing concrete seating will be removed and replaced with aluminum bleacher seating.
The Mid-Del School Board previewed plans to renovate Midwest City High School’s Rose Field during Monday night’s meeting. They plan to vote on the proposal next month. (Provided photo)
The Mid-Del School Board previewed plans to renovate Midwest City High School’s Rose Field during Monday night’s meeting. They plan to vote on the proposal next month. (Provided photo)
The Mid-Del School Board previewed plans to renovate Midwest City High School’s Rose Field during Monday night’s meeting. They plan to vote on the proposal next month. (Provided photo)
A new locker room and wellness building will be added to the east end of the stadium. The building will house home and visitor locker rooms, offices, storage areas, and training rooms.
Buildings for tickets, concessions and restrooms will be home and visitor sides. The building will be nearly identical expect the home side will have storage space. Additional restrooms will be added under the home bleachers.
The Midwest City project will eliminate about 70 parking spaces on the east side of the stadium. The district is considering options for additional parking, including using neighboring Jarman Middle School.
CMS Willowbrook is the general contractor for all the bond projects. Design Architects Plus designed all three stadium projects.
