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WEDNESDAY | 9.4.2013 | MaceandCROWN.COM | Vol. 56, Issue 2
THE FUTURE OF FOREMAN FIELD Old Dominion University proposes new football stadium By: Brian Jerry & Derek Page Senior Writer & Editor-in-Chief Mace & Crown A proposal for a new 30,000-seat oncampus football stadium was presented to the Old Dominion University executive committee of the Board of Visitors on Aug. 19. The proposal is part of the university’s latest campus master plan that has addressed university academics and research, student life and housing, and athletic goals. “The resulting master plan will examine our existing campus and how we use it, and provide options for enhancement that will help achieve the university’s vision over the next 20 years. In the process, we examined academic spaces, research facilities, housing, recreation, student services, pedestrian circulation, signage, traffic and transportation, among other topics,” Assistant Vice President for Marketing and Communications Jennifer Mullen Collins said. The new stadium would support the university’s rapidly expanding football program and fane base. Last year, ODU moved to the Football Bowl Subdivision, the highest level of college football and officials have since determined the current facility is too outdated for an FBS program. Though nothing is set in stone, anonymous sources told the Virginian-Pilot in August that the new stadium would be built on the site of the 30-year-old Powhatan Apartments dormitory complex at 48th Street and Powhatan Avenue. Those sources also said the stadium would be designed to expand to 45,000 seats or more and hope to have it open by 2017, just in time to host Virginia Tech in 2018.
ODU would also become one of few colleges to have a stadium with a view of the water, though it would only be visible in some sections. S.B. Ballard Stadium, which opened in 1936 and seats just over 19,000 fans, cost $300,000 to build at the time, with $4.96 million spent on 2013 renovations and $29,521,218 in total upgrades. Athletic Director Dr. Wood Selig said because of the location of Foreman Field is confined by Hampton Blvd, Bluestone and the many residential buildings of the Larchmont neighborhood that engineering an additional expansion of the stadium would not
be feasible. Collins echoed Selig in that Foreman Field cannot support the growth of the program and that, “any expansion would be a patchwork of additions at best and would be cost prohibitive.” Much of the old stadium would be demolished for student housing. According to the Virginian-Pilot, engineers determined renovating the stadium and adding more seats would cost more than building a new stadium. The insufficient foundation of the 77-year-old stadium means expanding atop the east and west sides of the stadium is unlikely and expanding into the north end
CLERY ACT UNCLEAR TO STUDENTS
The Circumstances FOR CRIME ALERTS CAUSES CONCERN By: Mark Fulton Contributing Writer Mace & Crown In the early hours of August 24, an aggravated assault took place on the 800 block of West 41 Street and Killam Avenue. A man was reportedly shot by an unidentified suspect and taken to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital in stable condition. The incident left many of the nearby student residents feeling shaken, especially those who live on that side of the block. Some students questioned why there wasn’t a University Alert sent about the shooting informing students of what happened. “The lack of notification from the University is appalling. They’ll send out an alert for a fallen branch, but not for someone being
shot in the head less than fifty yards off campus?” student and resident Moneeb Ahmed said. The University Alert System sends out emails to students called “ODU Safety Timely Warning” when the University needs to send out important information crucial to student safety. An ODU Safety Timely Warning was not issued in this case. Jennifer Mullen Collins, assistant vice president for marketing and communications wrote, “The Police Chief decides when an incident meets the criteria for an alert under the Federal Clery Act. So, it’s not a matter of ‘worthiness.’ I don’t think most students understand that there is an actual federal law that we follow and that dictates the circumstances under which alerts are sent.”
The Federal Clery Act is a Federal law that requires schools that receive federal funding to disclose information about crime statistics. The act requires that universities notify students when events happen on campus that may threaten the students’ safety. The situation that happened on 41st Street, just days before fall semester classes began, was not on campus and, by the Clery Act, is not applicable as an ODU Safety Timely Warning. Another student and resident on 41st, Moneeb Ahmed said, “The lack of notification from the University is appalling. They’ll send out an alert for a fallen branch, but not for someone being shot in the head less than fifty yards off campus?”
zone would require demolishing a historic building. The AstroTurf field and Ainslie Football Complex would remain and be used for other purposes such as recreational space or perhaps a conference center. No details regarding the projects cost have been release and no finalizations to the master plan will be made until after the university receives feedback from students, faculty, staff, neighborhood leaders and city officials. Collins suggested that the university’s goals in considering a new football stadium are to support the ODU athletic programs
and provide a high quality experience expected by the fans. This plan may also help launch a similar project in the future for the basketball program’s Ted Constant Convocation Center. “We remain committed to running a professional and positive game day experience for everyone – athletes, fans, our neighbors – and our continued master pan process will help us achieve that goal,” Collins said. She expects the university to begin public presentations in a couple of weeks to address details of the specifics of the master plan.