Baylor’s new riverside stadium could be Texas’s first college stadium to be proud of. For such a football oriented state, the home stadiums to all the big schools are surprisingly, what’s a nice term… modest, understated, have a great personality? What might even be more surprising is that the shiny new facility might be here as early as the 2014 football season. The venue will support up to 45,000 fans, have scenic river front views, a new boardwalk and upgraded transportation routes to the area.
The regents at Baylor approved the $250 million stadium which will replace the slowly decaying 62 year old Floyd Casey Stadium and will finally be on campus. If Waco approves using $35 million of tax increment financing zone #1 to help fund the stadium, which it will, then we can expect to see construction start almost immediately. Some early site prep work has begun and the demolition of a local apartment complex has already been scheduled.
Officials passed the first stage of approvals and say the next vote is just a formality. The next meeting will also hear some local community suggestions and concerns regarding using city supported complex for community usage. Ken Starr, Baylor President, said, “This is truly going to be a community complex and Baylor stadium. So I think everybody is going to be very happy with the many uses of this complex”. Like other portions of Baylor’s campus that were city funded, facilities are available for public access as long as events are in line with school moral code.
The $35 million of funding for infrastructure will support the stadium as well as provide a foundation for further development around the area. Water, sewer, electrical and road renovations will mark the first successful project in the area for quite some time. City officials have been trying to spur on development on the riverside location for almost 30 years with no plans ever panning out. Failure to close on this project would be disastrous for the area, which is struggling with its growth to big city status.
Baylor University is currently among the top employers in the city along with the Providence Health Center, The City of Waco and the local school district. City officials have a history of providing Baylor funding and infrastructure support to keep the university in Waco, which has been fundamental in Waco’s survival and growth. When completed, the stadium will become the largest attraction in the area, which can only be good for business.
On a side note, thank you to Elizabeth and Drayton McLane Jr., not only for their extraordinary donation to the stadium, but for also naming the stadium “Baylor Stadium”. I don’t know if I could stand another Summa Field at Infocision Stadium or Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium, ugh.