Tuesday, March 27, 2007

            JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (March 27, 2007) - The ETSU Football Steering Committee released the preliminary artist renderings of a possible new outdoor stadium on Tuesday, marking yet another step forward in the process of bringing scholarship football back to the campus by the fall of 2010.

            Emphasizing that this is the first set of renderings provided by the facility consultant firm of Smith, McMillan and Partners Architects, PLLC, of Spartanburg, S.C., steering committee chairman and ETSU Vice President for Administration/COO Dr. Wilsie Bishop said there is still a great deal of excitement as the vision of a new stadium becomes clearer.

            "In working with Smith, McMillan and Partners, to develop this architectural rendering, we have teamed with experts who have helped other mid-major programs build their stadiums, and they understand the type of facility we need to create a full entertainment experience at game days," Bishop said. "If the student fee is approved in April, we will move forward with other phases of the design process."

            ETSU Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Dave Mullins said it is good to see the plan unfolding and that there is a great deal of work yet to be done.

            "Like the process we've followed for other projects that are part of our capital campaign for athletic facilities, this is the first phase and now we'll continue to the next step of the funding process," Mullins said. "It is exciting to see the vision of a new football stadium finally on paper."

            As ETSU students prepare to vote April 10 and 11 on a new athletic fee that would help support football's operational costs, Bishop, Mullins and others on the football steering committee are simultaneously working to secure alumni, community and corporate funding to pay for the costs associated with building the new outdoor stadium, and provide funds for other related expenses such as scholarships.

            The student fee, which calls for a $50 increase during the Fall 2007 and Spring 2008 semesters, would increase by another $50 per semester during the 2009-2010 school year. If approved, there will be no more student fee increases during the upcoming four years.

            In the event of a student vote in favor of the fee, ETSU will then need approval from the Tennessee Board of Regents during their June meeting, and funding for the stadium will then need to be in hand by the summer of 2008 to begin construction.

            For more on the "New Era" of ETSU football, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the "New Era" logo located on the right. All four of the new stadium renderings are available on the site.