Next phase will give facelift to stadium

Planned renovations to Houck Stadium have not gone nearly as quickly as Southeast Missouri State University officials hoped, but there appears to be light at the end of the tunnel.

Southeast athletic director Don Kaverman said work is expected to start in the next few weeks on enhancement of the stadium exterior facades and landscaping, along with renovations to the existing press box.

"We're really excited about getting things going," Kaverman said. "I think people are definitely going to see a lot nicer outside part of the stadium."

Kaverman said improvements to the exterior of Houck Stadium, built in 1930, are overdue. When finished, Kaverman said, the exterior -- which faces Broadway -- will have a stucco-type finish and the iron gates along the entrance to the stadium will be painted. The outside of the press box will also be refurbished to match the exterior of the stadium.

"Houck is really a decaying facility," Kaverman said. "It was built 70 years ago and not a lot has been done, other than routine maintenance. It's really crumbling before our eyes. You can see big chunks that have literally fallen out of the facades. We're going to essentially put a new exterior skin on it."

The renovations, according to Kaverman, will not be completed in time for the Indians' first home game Aug. 29, but should be done by their second home game Oct. 5.

Kaverman said the renovations -- which will include minor improvements to the inside of the stadium -- will cost about $250,000 and will come from within the university since the project is one of maintenance.

But still on hold is a major part of the multi-phase improvement program for the stadium that was endorsed by the Southeast Board of Regents in 1999 as part of a capital campaign at the university.

The first phase of the plan was in 2000 when FieldTurf was installed for about $885,000, a cost shared by the university and private funding. The artificial playing surface, which resembles grass, has met with good reviews.

The remaining phases of the improvement program -- a building on the west end of the stadium that will house offices and home and visiting dressing rooms for both football and soccer, along with a new press box that will replace the existing one -- will cost about $3.5 million, which all must come from private funding, Kaverman said.

And Kaverman admits that raising that kind of money amid the school's budget crisis is not easy.

"We continue to present proposals to various groups and businesses," Kaverman said. "We have to be able to attract some private support. It's a matter of getting donors to agree to support the project. Whenever you're trying to raise 3 1/2 million dollars, it's tough."

Kaverman said the university would consider renaming the facility in a donor's honor, depending on the circumstances and the size of the donation.

"It could be a legacy for somebody for another 100 years," he said.

Asked if he had expected much of the improvements to be completed by now, Kaverman said, "I don't know. Any time you try to generate private funding, it takes some time. I had hoped so. But I believe it's going to come together. And once we have the funding, it can get done quickly, within a year."

Houck Stadium might be an eyesore now, said Kaverman, but once the entire improvement program is completed -- and he fully expects it to be in the not-too-distant future, although that depends on the money raised -- then the venerable facility can become a showcase for the university and the region.

"I think it's a gorgeous setting and once we get everything done it's going to be a beautiful facility," Kaverman said. "This could really become a community and regional facility where we could have shows, concerts, all kinds of events. It could be something everybody would be really proud of."

mmishow@semissourian.com

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