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<a href='http://www.daily-chronicle.com/articles/2005/11/22/sports/sports04.txt' target='_blank'>http://www.daily-chronicle.com/articles/20...ts/sports04.txt</a>

By Steve Brown - Chronicle Correspondent

DeKALB - Almost seven months after announcing the construction of a long-awaited north end zone training facility at Huskie Stadium, Northern Illinois football coach Joe Novak's dream is finally becoming a reality on Wednesday.

In April, administrators announced the beginning of the public phase for Northern Illinois' Academic and Athletic Performance Center, which will begin construction during the halftime ceremony of Wednesday's home finale against Western Michigan.

The historic ground-breaking, engineered by NIU Athletics Director Jim Phillips, might be followed by the school's first Mid-American Conference West Division championship since 1983 with a win over the Broncos.

The ground-breaking mark of $7 million was finally reached early last week, but the actual cost is far more than the projected $9.5 million construction price tag administrators announced to a tent full of boosters, alumni, athletes and other members of the NIU community on April 23.

According to the project's preliminary budget documents, HKM Projects and Planners, Inc. estimated that at $164.80 per square-foot, the 67,968 square-foot facility would cost $11,201,421, for construction alone. That projection, released in June, was reduced from the $13 million figure HKM had released a month earlier.




Eddie Williams, executive vice president and chief of operations for Northern Illinois' department of finance and facilities, hopes to push the latest $11 million estimate down even further.

“We're not excited that these numbers aren't where we want to end up, but we haven't even gotten to the point where we're past drawings,

Whats exciting is the last sentence that they expect it to be done before the first home game next season

Very good article with lots of info...i like it!

It's too bad Cary never got off her asss and got this done like Philips did!

She got it rolling. Everyone has some stake in this with the 2 biggest being Tim Steadman and Coach Novak, by the way Tim will be leaving Dec 1 to assume a similar job at Michigan St

gcd Wrote:She got it rolling. Everyone has some stake in this with the 2 biggest being Tim Steadman and Coach Novak, by the way Tim will be leaving Dec 1 to assume a similar job at Michigan St

Why does he want to make a downward move?

its the big 10.

gcd Wrote:its the big 10.

Your point?

Wow. I can't believe it is going to be ready for next year. It is going to look SICK!!!

I say we get a top 50 recruiting class next year because of it and because of our (hopefully) continued success this year.

rabidawg900 Wrote:Wow. I can't believe it is going to be ready for next year. It is going to look SICK!!!

I say we get a top 50 recruiting class next year because of it and because of our (hopefully) continued success this year.

I have one word for you: WMU

RobertN Wrote:

rabidawg900 Wrote:Wow.&nbsp; I can't believe it is going to be ready for next year.&nbsp; It is going to look SICK!!!

I say we get a top 50 recruiting class next year because of it and because of our (hopefully) continued success this year.

I have one word for you: WMU

Exactly. :wave:

NIU27 Wrote:It's too bad Cary never got off her asss and got this done like Philips did!

Agreed, one of her challenges was her inability to raise money. I just find it fascinating how quickly Phillips got this done.

If some contractor takes the bid and promises a 10/06 finish, I hope we get a good penalty clause because that contractor will pay for the practice facility. It will not be finished in less than a year, and it is
doubtful to be finished in two years. Unless the borings have been taken and the drawings are complete and the bids have been written
up properly, I doubt if the first real shovelful is not removed until after
the corn is planted.
GO HUSKIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

pantone1935 Wrote:If some contractor takes the bid and promises a 10/06 finish, I hope we get a good penalty clause because that contractor will pay for the practice facility. It will not be finished in less than a year, and it is
doubtful to be finished in two years. Unless the borings have been taken and the drawings are complete and the bids have been written
up properly, I doubt if the first real shovelful is not removed until after
the corn is planted.
GO HUSKIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, I don't think the exterior of building itself will take too long to put up because it looks like it is mostly if not all prefabricated(as a matter of fact, it looks like the walls are the same as the rectangle convo office portion has) but the question is how fast/when they can get the ground work done and ready for the exterior walls.

<a href='http://www3.niu.edu/athletics/aapc/index.html' target='_blank'>AAPC website drawing</a>

The news story scares the bejesus out of me. We have raised 7.0 million of a 9 million plus project that could cost over 11 million.

I sure hope they know what they are doing!