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45 days til construction starts

Do we know what the final plans are? I thought we'd hear at the end of summer.

My best guess - ODU has given Ballard the base plans for which to base their bid (otherwise, how the hell would Ballard know how much to bid if he didn't know what the plans were) so plans exist somewhere. I assume any options that ODU might try to tag on would just be a change order and there's a handshake deal that Ballard wouldn't go crazy with his price. The skeleton of the stadium isn't going to change, aka the large foundation pieces. The footprint is the footprint. If you take a walk around the stadium on your next game, you'll notice wide footings sticking up out of the ground. Those are the piles that were driven before kickoff to help minimize construction time this offseason.

So in short, I can guarantee that there are final plans somewhere. For some reason, they aren't being released and I think the obvious reason why is they are trying to add more bells and whistles to it. They showed us the concept plans already, and the average fan probably assumes that's what we're getting.

The average fan probably thinks we are getting the original plan since that got way more press than the scaled back version. Would a better north end zone be the type of thing that could be added on?

The last I heard, current plans does not include the north end zone mods. They have funds for the top of the line scoreboard which is great news. The issue is can it be relocated over the north end zone with the budget they have. The current location is horrible for the in game atmosphere. Also, they would like to add to the baseline plan a redo of the north end zone to be a social gathering spot for the students and to host outdoor events. I think they are like $1M short. This would then allow the student section to be moved into the northern most section of the east side stands. I am figuring they want to figure out how to use the stadium for more than just football games so they can generate additional revenues. I know they are also trying to raise money for an in stadium social space for donors and more suites at the top of the west side stands. This can also generate revenue for ODAF. I would not be surprised for some last minute changes to the construction plan because it feels like this is the last bus out of town and they are trying to fit everything they can into it. I also think a phase 2 stadium upgrade is not in the plans anytime soon so they are doing everything they can to get this right now. Kudos to them for trying their hardest.

I always wonder why they don't have donation jars, for a lack of better words, as you enter each game. If everyone dropped a dollar or two in the jars as they entered or left the game that could be several thousand raised at each home game.

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(10-05-2018 06:16 AM)monarx Wrote:  The average fan probably thinks we are getting the original plan since that got way more press than the scaled back version. Would a better north end zone be the type of thing that could be added on?

From a construction contracting perspective, yes it could be added on. The construction price would be negotiated with Ballard if that's the way ODU wants to go.

In usual projects I would call this bad practice, because you are putting a lot of money into an option that can't be competitively bid on - you already have your contractor. So the contractor could mark the entire thing up 10% if he wanted to. I get the hopeful impression that Ballard wouldn't do that and he is going to deliver a quality product without looking to completely maximize profit on every change.

Then again, I'm a design guy so I could be complete wrong :D

(10-05-2018 07:54 AM)odu09 Wrote:  

(10-05-2018 06:16 AM)monarx Wrote:  The average fan probably thinks we are getting the original plan since that got way more press than the scaled back version. Would a better north end zone be the type of thing that could be added on?

From a construction contracting perspective, yes it could be added on. The construction price would be negotiated with Ballard if that's the way ODU wants to go.

In usual projects I would call this bad practice, because you are putting a lot of money into an option that can't be competitively bid on - you already have your contractor. So the contractor could mark the entire thing up 10% if he wanted to. I get the hopeful impression that Ballard wouldn't do that and he is going to deliver a quality product without looking to completely maximize profit on every change.

Then again, I'm a design guy so I could be complete wrong :D

I'm sure there is a very large contingency amount built into the contract for change orders.

(10-05-2018 07:31 AM)Mr.BigBlue Wrote:  The last I heard, current plans does not include the north end zone mods. They have funds for the top of the line scoreboard which is great news. The issue is can it be relocated over the north end zone with the budget they have. The current location is horrible for the in game atmosphere. Also, they would like to add to the baseline plan a redo of the north end zone to be a social gathering spot for the students and to host outdoor events. I think they are like $1M short. This would then allow the student section to be moved into the northern most section of the east side stands. I am figuring they want to figure out how to use the stadium for more than just football games so they can generate additional revenues. I know they are also trying to raise money for an in stadium social space for donors and more suites at the top of the west side stands. This can also generate revenue for ODAF. I would not be surprised for some last minute changes to the construction plan because it feels like this is the last bus out of town and they are trying to fit everything they can into it. I also think a phase 2 stadium upgrade is not in the plans anytime soon so they are doing everything they can to get this right now. Kudos to them for trying their hardest.

Thanks for the update. I think it would be cool if they just did a tiered decking in the endzone and made that a new club level. Something similar to what they did at the baseball stadium. That would allow them to put the new scoreboard there, create new revenue streams and move the students without sacrificing too many tickets.

One thing I'm hoping for other than the new end zone is that they make the new press box better looking. I assume the reason it looks so cheap is because the plan is for it to be temporary, but they haven't said that. It could be removed in the near future, replaced with suites on that level and a new nice press box on top of those suites. But if they don't think those suites can be added in the next five years or so, something should be done to make the press box nicer and more finished looking. In the renderings, it looks to me like a double wide stuck on top of a decent stadium. Brick it in, put some type of angled shingled roof on top, signage, flags... something. I liked what Liberty did with theirs, even if you took away the suites.

(10-05-2018 07:31 AM)Mr.BigBlue Wrote:  I think they are like $1M short.

And yet they still haven't asked the average fan to contribute directly to the stadium in some way. 2,000 people donating $500 would do it. 1000 engraved bricks in the new stadium at $500 each gets you half way there. I would love to know why they haven't reached out with opportunities to give directly to the stadium effort.

(10-05-2018 08:23 AM)monarx Wrote:  

(10-05-2018 07:31 AM)Mr.BigBlue Wrote:  I think they are like $1M short.

And yet they still haven't asked the average fan to contribute directly to the stadium in some way. 2,000 people donating $500 would do it. 1000 engraved bricks in the new stadium at $500 each gets you half way there. I would love to know why they haven't reached out with opportunities to give directly to the stadium effort.

No kidding. I'd donate for a brick with my family on it. I just emailed my mom and was like "wouldn't Rose and Womble want to be a big sponsor of the student end zone and get your name in front of all those future graduates looking for homes?" =]

I suggested that over a year ago. The only other thing I would like to see done with the bricks is re-purpose them as the inner wall that surrounds the field. I think that would give the stadium a great look and more of a historic feel.

Serious question- what costs more, buying new brick or salvaging old brick?

(10-05-2018 10:10 AM)Old Dominion Wrote:  Serious question- what costs more, buying new brick or salvaging old brick?

I'm not sure, you would only save on the new brick quantity not the transportation costs because you are already bringing in new brick for the other parts of the stadium.

There would be some cost/labor in "cleaning up" the bricks or sorting the unusable ones from the good ones. It just comes down to if you care about doing it or not. Any added cost I cant imagine would be that much.

(10-05-2018 10:10 AM)Old Dominion Wrote:  Serious question- what costs more, buying new brick or salvaging old brick?

I am pretty sure the biggest costs associated with brick is the labor. I would assume the work to CAREFULLY remove brick for reuse would be more difficult and more costly than just buying new, or even better buying a precast wall that already has the brick thin-set on it.

(10-05-2018 08:04 AM)ODUDrunkard13 Wrote:  

(10-05-2018 07:31 AM)Mr.BigBlue Wrote:  The last I heard, current plans does not include the north end zone mods. They have funds for the top of the line scoreboard which is great news. The issue is can it be relocated over the north end zone with the budget they have. The current location is horrible for the in game atmosphere. Also, they would like to add to the baseline plan a redo of the north end zone to be a social gathering spot for the students and to host outdoor events. I think they are like $1M short. This would then allow the student section to be moved into the northern most section of the east side stands. I am figuring they want to figure out how to use the stadium for more than just football games so they can generate additional revenues. I know they are also trying to raise money for an in stadium social space for donors and more suites at the top of the west side stands. This can also generate revenue for ODAF. I would not be surprised for some last minute changes to the construction plan because it feels like this is the last bus out of town and they are trying to fit everything they can into it. I also think a phase 2 stadium upgrade is not in the plans anytime soon so they are doing everything they can to get this right now. Kudos to them for trying their hardest.

Thanks for the update. I think it would be cool if they just did a tiered decking in the endzone and made that a new club level. Something similar to what they did at the baseball stadium. That would allow them to put the new scoreboard there, create new revenue streams and move the students without sacrificing too many tickets.

The only Issue I see is that if you put a new scoreboard in the north endzone it interferes with the seating for the north endzone. I think it would be best to put it over the south endzone building like originally planned just not as big

From HM's FAU article

"Take good look at FAU Stadium

If you watch ODU-FAU on TV (it’s on Stadium TV, a streaming service, and Facebook), take a good look at FAU Stadium. It is the model for the renovated Foreman Field at S.B. Ballard Stadium that will debut in 2019.

If you happen to go to the game, enjoy the surroundings because you’ll have the same type of amenities next season in Norfolk.

The footprint at ODU is smaller, so the stadiums won’t look exactly alike. If ODU could fit FAU Stadium onto the Foreman Field site, officials would love to. But the seats, the stands, the rest rooms and everything else will look much like the new stadium at ODU

You can actually try out those seats on Oct. 13, when ODU hosts Marshall. Mockups of the bleacher and chairback seats in the new stadium are Ballard Stadium between the Atlantic Bay Gameday Building and the stadium's east side (facing Hampton Boulevard).

Give them a try. They're a lot roomier and more comfortable seats than you've experienced for the last ten football seasons. "

(10-05-2018 02:20 PM)cmett003 Wrote:  You can actually try out those seats on Oct. 13, when ODU hosts Marshall. Mockups of the bleacher and chairback seats in the new stadium are Ballard Stadium between the Atlantic Bay Gameday Building and the stadium's east side (facing Hampton Boulevard).

Give them a try. They're a lot roomier and more comfortable seats than you've experienced for the last ten football seasons. "

I tried the seats out before the VT game and they are a lot more comfortable. I still prefer to stand, but they're much better.

Will there be more seats than now? Will most of the bleacher seats have rail backs?