Buford T. Justice said:

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We do have lots of variance on the current site, but we're going to have to sacrifice some parking. But, you could go with another garage on the left field side and have a party deck on top.

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I just do not think we have the room to do what we need and want to do now and thirty years from now at the Olsen site.

Doc knows. Listen to him.

Buford T. Justice said:

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We do have lots of variance on the current site, but we're going to have to sacrifice some parking. But, you could go with another garage on the left field side and have a party deck on top.

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We've got no room to maneuver. The grandstand lower deck is too small. To enlarge it, we would need to move the field, and we can't do that because of the tracks and the Rec Center. We can't do much down the 3rd base line because of the player facilities and offices already constructed there. First base line presents a terrible view because of the sun (especially late in the season). We will never have the kind of ballpark that rivals MSU, Arkansas, or South Carolina at the current location.

I need to win the lottery

twk said:

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Buford T. Justice said:

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We do have lots of variance on the current site, but we're going to have to sacrifice some parking. But, you could go with another garage on the left field side and have a party deck on top.

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We've got no room to maneuver. The grandstand lower deck is too small. To enlarge it, we would need to move the field, and we can't do that because of the tracks and the Rec Center. We can't do much down the 3rd base line because of the player facilities and offices already constructed there. First base line presents a terrible view because of the sun (especially late in the season). We will never have the kind of ballpark that rivals MSU, Arkansas, or South Carolina at the current location.

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Double deck where the LF berm is. Build double deck (shaded) where the visitors BP is.
BTW, Arky site lines beyond 1st and 3rd base are terrible.

Double deck down the baselines, suites at the top, additional club seats on the first two or three rows of second deck in the 4 center sections behind home plate, double deck party deck in the left field corner, add seating on top of the green monster, bring back Aggie Alley and put a picnic area there and turn the right field bleachers into a berm or the concrete steps like Kentucky has that wrap around the stadium.

Sea Pony 07 said:

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Double deck down the baselines,

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You can't extend the upper deck down the 3rd base line, at least not easily, thanks to the clubhouse and coaches' offices being in the way.

Quote:

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suites at the top, additional club seats on the first two or three rows of second deck in the 4 center sections behind home plate,

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They could add suites flanking the current ones (I suppose about 8), but they would probably lose several hundred seats in the process, which would kind of defeat the purpose. You could declare any seat you want to be a club seat, but I don't think the club space is big enough to accommodate too many more people.

Quote:

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double deck party deck in the left field corner, add seating on top of the green monster, bring back Aggie Alley and put a picnic area there

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Can't really do much of anything in Left Field as that would infringe upon the fire lane for the Rec Center.

Quote:

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and turn the right field bleachers into a berm or the concrete steps like Kentucky has that wrap around the stadium.

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Going from bleachers to a berm or terrace would reduce seating capacity.

This is my fantasy Olsen. :-) Move the club house and build the second deck over the coaches office?

Sea Pony 07 said:

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This is my fantasy Olsen. :-) Move the club house and build the second deck over the coaches office?

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My fantasy is that we build the new Olsen in the parking lot behind the old one. But, yeah, if you could knock down the building in the left field corner and extend the grandstand down the 3rd base line, that would be a good start toward getting what you need.

Yeah, I'd like to move it over also.

If I understand you correctly, that is what I meant by having variance. Look at the total stadium footprint, and see where you can move the stadium within it. Parking will have to be either slashed or garaged, but there is room within the current footprint. Granted, some on the east side will be lost to the road construction project.

By stadium footprint, I am including ALL of the current surrounding parking locations.

Buford T. Justice said:

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If I understand you correctly, that is what I meant by having variance. Look at the total stadium footprint, and see where you can move the stadium within it. Parking will have to be either slashed or garaged, but there is room within the current footprint. Granted, some on the east side will be lost to the road construction project.

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Problem is I don't believe they have enough room to do that without knocking down the existing facility (or so I've been told), so we'd have to play elsewhere for a year or two

We put $24 million into 12 years ago, and it was a huge improvement, and just approved another $60 million six months ago. Is Schloss not happy with the $60 million plan? Are the fans not happy with the plans (they seem to be mostly team and luxury facility improvements, not fan seating)?

I'm sure this has been discussed, I was too lazy to read through the thread. It's so much nicer than it was when I was in school, but I haven't been to another SEC ballpark in a very, very long time so I don't have a sense of us falling behind competitors.

Complete Idiot said:

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We put $24 million into 12 years ago, and it was a huge improvement, and just approved another $60 million six months ago. Is Schloss not happy with the $60 million plan? Are the fans not happy with the plans (they seem to be mostly team and luxury facility improvements, not fan seating)?

I'm sure this has been discussed, I was too lazy to read through the thread. It's so much nicer than it was when I was in school, but I haven't been to another SEC ballpark in a very, very long time so I don't have a sense of us falling behind competitors.

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That $60 million was just a placeholder. No plan has been approved, yet.

The money that was spent in 2012 added some needed improvements, but did not address Olsen's basic flaws.

Question…cannot the Fire Lane become a tunnel, and build seating over it, to the extent of the Rec Center? Demo-ing the entirety of Olsen seems extreme. (to be clear, I'm not in favor of a "cobbled together" solution, but a parking garage can solve lost parking as well.

SECNetworkAg said:

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Why not wait a year or two and get the funding and do it right?

Seems dumb to rush and not do it right.

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Do we really have more money in a year or two? We did the Olsen reno last times because we didn't have the money to do it right. It was supposed to have more phases with more improvements, but that didn't happen. We don't seem to have enough money this time to do a full rebuild. Seems like money would still be an issue in a year or two too.

If it is just wait a year or two and there is more money to do it right, than that is the right answer. I am just not sure we are in a much better place in a year or two. How long do you keep waiting?

BoerneGator said:

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Question…cannot the Fire Lane become a tunnel, and build seating over it, to the extent of the Rec Center? Demo-ing the entirety of Olsen seems extreme. (to be clear, I'm not in favor of a "cobbled together" solution, but a parking garage can solve lost parking as well.

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How do you get ladder truck ladder extended in a tunnel if there is fire on that side of the Rec center?

nereus said:

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SECNetworkAg said:

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Why not wait a year or two and get the funding and do it right?

Seems dumb to rush and not do it right.

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Do we really have more money in a year or two? We did the Olsen reno last times because we didn't have the money to do it right. It was supposed to have more phases with more improvements, but that didn't happen. We don't seem to have enough money this time to do a full rebuild. Seems like money would still be an issue in a year or two too.

If it is just wait a year or two and there is more money to do it right, than that is the right answer. I am just not sure we are in a much better place in a year or two. How long do you keep waiting?

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we haven't even started a public campaign. The issue is we don't know the plan or budget, so who knows if we have the money or not.

it seems to me they had no issues raising the money they have so far for all the stuff they're doing.

so why would it be an issue now?

They had problems raising money trying to renovate Olsen last time. They had problems when trying to build Reed Arena originally. Lots of people want a complete rebuild for basketball but it doesn't look like we probably have money for that and are looking at renovating it instead. Track didn't even have home meets for a long time due to issues raising funds for an outdoor facility. Softball waited a long time for a new facility. We have a tennis player tweeting Elon Musk asking for a lead donation and trying and get attention for an indoor tennis facility.

We seem to be able to raise money for football facilities with no issue, but other things not so much from what I can tell.

nereus said:

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They had problems raising money trying to renovate Olsen last time. They had problems when trying to build Reed Arena originally. Lots of people want a complete rebuild for basketball but it doesn't look like we probably have money for that and are looking at renovating it instead. Track didn't even have home meets for a long time due to issues raising funds for an outdoor facility. Softball waited a long time for a new facility. We have a tennis player tweeting Elon Musk asking for a lead donation and trying and get attention for an indoor tennis facility.

We seem to be able to raise money for football facilities with no issue, but other things not so much from what I can tell.

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We have changed how we do athletic facilities since we've done Reed, that was our fault that we put the legislature in a position to influence how Reed was built.

BBP, the issue was complete lack of revenue from the B12 and the fact Kyle field reno was looming. They had to do something or risk it getting lost in the Kyle Field reno.

Again those where pre SEC days, the revenue stream is much different.

if you notice, they follow a plan, they don't overlap projects. Thats why T&F and softball took as long as it did.

Again we don't have a plan, it's hard to say we can't afford it when we don't have a clue what it is

BQ_90 said:

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nereus said:

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They had problems raising money trying to renovate Olsen last time. They had problems when trying to build Reed Arena originally. Lots of people want a complete rebuild for basketball but it doesn't look like we probably have money for that and are looking at renovating it instead. Track didn't even have home meets for a long time due to issues raising funds for an outdoor facility. Softball waited a long time for a new facility. We have a tennis player tweeting Elon Musk asking for a lead donation and trying and get attention for an indoor tennis facility.

We seem to be able to raise money for football facilities with no issue, but other things not so much from what I can tell.

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We have changed how we do athletic facilities since we've done Reed, that was our fault that we put the legislature in a position to influence how Reed was built.

BBP, the issue was complete lack of revenue from the B12 and the fact Kyle field reno was looming. They had to do something or risk it getting lost in the Kyle Field reno.

Again those where pre SEC days, the revenue stream is much different.

if you notice, they follow a plan, they don't overlap projects. Thats why T&F and softball took as long as it did.

Again we don't have a plan, it's hard to say we can't afford it when we don't have a clue what it is

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You might be right. I'm not really in the know...just my perceptions. But the poster talked about delaying baseball for a year or two to raise more funds. Does the basketball renovation then jump it as they are looking at a major renovation there? Then only doing one project at a time as you say does that push baseball back even more years waiting on basketball. I don't know, but I'm not sure it is as simple as just delay a year or two and we can build what we want.

I also don't think you just come up with a plan independently of having an idea of what you think you can raise. You generally have a pretty good idea what you can raise when you come up with your plan because you don't want a stalled or failed capital campaign. Indications that a total rebuild is off the table (as some of the posters have mentioned) seem to me to mean that they aren't seeing the funding potential for a total rebuild. But I'm not an insider with any inside information so maybe I'm wrong. I would certainly love to be wrong on this.

nereus said:

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BQ_90 said:

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nereus said:

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They had problems raising money trying to renovate Olsen last time. They had problems when trying to build Reed Arena originally. Lots of people want a complete rebuild for basketball but it doesn't look like we probably have money for that and are looking at renovating it instead. Track didn't even have home meets for a long time due to issues raising funds for an outdoor facility. Softball waited a long time for a new facility. We have a tennis player tweeting Elon Musk asking for a lead donation and trying and get attention for an indoor tennis facility.

We seem to be able to raise money for football facilities with no issue, but other things not so much from what I can tell.

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We have changed how we do athletic facilities since we've done Reed, that was our fault that we put the legislature in a position to influence how Reed was built.

BBP, the issue was complete lack of revenue from the B12 and the fact Kyle field reno was looming. They had to do something or risk it getting lost in the Kyle Field reno.

Again those where pre SEC days, the revenue stream is much different.

if you notice, they follow a plan, they don't overlap projects. Thats why T&F and softball took as long as it did.

Again we don't have a plan, it's hard to say we can't afford it when we don't have a clue what it is

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You might be right. I'm not really in the know...just my perceptions. But the poster talked about delaying baseball for a year or two to raise more funds. Does the basketball renovation then jump it as they are looking at a major renovation there? Then only doing one project at a time as you say does that push baseball back even more years waiting on basketball. I don't know, but I'm not sure it is as simple as just delay a year or two and we can build what we want.

I also don't think you just come up with a plan independently of having an idea of what you think you can raise. You generally have a pretty good idea what you can raise when you come up with your plan because you don't want a stalled or failed capital campaign. Indications that a total rebuild is off the table (as some of the posters have mentioned) seem to me to mean that they aren't seeing the funding potential for a total rebuild. But I'm not an insider with any inside information so maybe I'm wrong. I would certainly love to be wrong on this.

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IMO Reed will have to be done in conjunction with University funds. So that will complicate it somewhat. I just don't see a athletic dept only arena along with keeping Reed. I also do not think Reed has to be remodeled. They have spend plenty of money on the players facilities. If they do Reed it will need to generate more revenue, which means clubs and suites. I just don't think there is a demand for that right now.

BoerneGator said:

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Question…cannot the Fire Lane become a tunnel, and build seating over it, to the extent of the Rec Center? Demo-ing the entirety of Olsen seems extreme. (to be clear, I'm not in favor of a "cobbled together" solution, but a parking garage can solve lost parking as well.

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The purpose of the fire lane is to provide them access but also a place to position themselves to fight the fire. A "fire lane tunnel" defeats the point of the fire lane.

I hate to say it but tu is ahead of us in basketball and baseball facilities.

Ag8086 said:

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I hate to say it but tu is ahead of us in basketball and baseball facilities.

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they always have been

I'm sure A&M would love for a private company to come build a new Reed and then lease it back to the AD for basketball and volleyball games.

But I don't see that happening.

You mean the same whorn that plays on turf?

How long is the list of prospective season ticket holders, of which I'm on? Hundreds of people, thousands? Seems they could factor this in with trying to get a $ amount they'd be able to fund in association with upgraded facility options. Might be a gauge to see how serious people on this list are. Obviously will need larger donor aid, but this would be a piece of the puzzle. Not a lot of transparency in the process all around.

Ag8086 said:

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I hate to say it but tu is ahead of us in basketball and baseball facilities.

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They don't even have grass and dirt.

Polska said:

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How long is the list of prospective season ticket holders, of which I'm on? Hundreds of people, thousands? Seems they could factor this in with trying to get a $ amount they'd be able to fund in association with upgraded facility options. Might be a gauge to see how serious people on this list are. Obviously will need larger donor aid, but this would be a piece of the puzzle. Not a lot of transparency in the process all around.

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You have to get lead donors first.

Not in baseball. That field is a dump imo And that thought is shared by most who have played there.

The disch is trash

BQ_90 said:

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BoerneGator said:

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Question…cannot the Fire Lane become a tunnel, and build seating over it, to the extent of the Rec Center? Demo-ing the entirety of Olsen seems extreme. (to be clear, I'm not in favor of a "cobbled together" solution, but a parking garage can solve lost parking as well.

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How do you get ladder truck ladder extended in a tunnel if there is fire on that side of the Rec center?

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I get your point...but since we're dealing in hypotheticals, I reckon an access point (opening in a structure) could be designed into it. Every building currently in existence does not have complete ladder truck access. Furthermore, the likelihood of a fire in the Rec center is none (Slim left the building).

trouble said:

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The disch is trash

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Agree

ensign_beedrill said:

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Ag8086 said:

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I hate to say it but tu is ahead of us in basketball and baseball facilities.

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They don't even have grass and dirt.

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I'd play on turf if we could half the National Championships they have