Gies Memorial Stadium
Ugh, I was hoping we could at least find some cost-effective way to fill in that void between SEZ and the horseshoe
in other words ,
we have no plans right now to start any significant renovation or expansion to GMS, unless we get one or two mega donors to pony up & underwrite all or most of it .
any “temp bleachers “ like we had in mid-late 1980’s in front of the horseshoe would only happen if there was HUGE demand and they could sell it out for all home games. my guess is Josh just isn’t expecting that demand to materialize in the next year or two .
Fighter of the Nightman
- Chicago, IL
How many bleachers would it even take to fill in that ugly empty space, though?? If the concern is not being able to sell the tickets, these new sold tickets in the front rows of the Horseshoe would simply be sold before either the corner nosebleeds in the East Balcony or the very back rows of the "hidden" East Main seats underneath the East Balcony, and we would all be better off for it, lol. In other words, we don't need to be able to sell 63K+ tickets for it to still be worth it to fill in that space.
Why not add the bleachers and have the DIA provide those seats for free to Non-profit/Charities, and Local/Regional Schools to use? At a minimum, those in the free seats could/may still purchase concessions. Furthermore, having SOMETHING there is better than nothing, and it would contribute to the game day experience. Win/Win/Win in my book. For the big marque games (OSU, UM, Iowa, etc) open them up for sale to the general public if demand warrants.
Someone here knows I am sure what the capacity was when we did have bleachers down there in the 80/90's. Was it 1,000 / 1,500 / 2,000?
Shief
- Champaign Area
Ballparking it, I would say that bleachers in the gap would add around 2k seats.
Fans in those bleacher seats would likely access food, restrooms, and other services by going up the closest stairs on the sidelines.
Couldn't agree more. Seems like a no-brainer to me, but what do I know I guess.
Fighter of the Nightman
- Chicago, IL
I don't know how many temporary bleachers were in front of the Horseshoe, like in this photo...
(My GOD does that look better and more complete than the ridiculous gap we have now, lo!)
... but the removal of these temporary bleachers behind the Horseshoe before the 2011 season reduced our capacity from 62,870 to 60,670. So, the capacity of the temporary bleachers below is presumably 2,200.
Just eyeballing those photos, I would guess it would be around the same ~2,200 ballpark capacity. On one hand, the new temporary bleachers would have to cover the whole width of the Horseshoe unlike those temporary bleachers behind, but on the other I don't think you would need as many rows ... so it would probably even out.
P.S. While I was searching for those images, I found a great angle to engage in my favorite pastime - visually hammering home how pointlessly we limit our stadium's aesthetic by doing NOTHING to the Horseshoe.
Current Horseshoe
Simply Filling in That Gap
I didn't feel like having a super drawn out conversation with Chat GPT, but that front area could definitely be your beer garden area or something like that. I simply REFUSE to believe that would be prohibitively expensive, and I also flat-out reject the perspective that it doesn't make sense to touch the Horseshoe at all until some massive renovation is financially feasible...
Can't we put some laz-y-boys or barcaloungers in that space and call it "premium seating"?
you are preaching to the choir here with most people .I don't know how many temporary bleachers were in front of the Horseshoe, like in this photo...
(My GOD does that look better and more complete than the ridiculous gap we have now, lo!)
... but the removal of these temporary bleachers behind the Horseshoe before the 2011 season reduced our capacity from 62,870 to 60,670. So, the capacity of the temporary bleachers below is presumably 2,200.
Just eyeballing those photos, I would guess it would be around the same ~2,200 ballpark capacity. On one hand, the new temporary bleachers would have to cover the whole width of the Horseshoe unlike those temporary bleachers behind, but on the other I don't think you would need as many rows ... so it would probably even out.
P.S. While I was searching for those images, I found a great angle to engage in my favorite pastime - visually hammering home how pointlessly we limit our stadium's aesthetic by doing NOTHING to the Horseshoe.
Current Horseshoe
Simply Filling in That Gap
View attachment 50711
I didn't feel like having a super drawn out conversation with Chat GPT, but that front area could definitely be your beer garden area or something like that. I simply REFUSE to believe that would be prohibitively expensive, and I also flat-out reject the perspective that it doesn't make sense to touch the Horseshoe at all until some massive renovation is financially feasible...
I heard a very definite “no” from Josh this week about stadium renovations of any type other than electronic ones . I still think they are waiting for the future to firm up more with regards to the overall sports landscape & where we fit in it .
we need another mega donor or two to step up .
Original Air Bud for Mirkovic or Air Bud: Golden Receiver because it's in a football stadium? FOIA request coming.
Fighter of the Nightman
- Chicago, IL
Yeah, I know I am not alone ... just bummed apparently Josh is VERY much not on my side here.
I somewhat understand holding out for a truly impressive SEZ renovation once we can secure another big-time donation that would make it possible. However, I think the real divide isn't those who want some type of Horseshoe renovation vs. those who don't; I don't think there are many people anywhere would prefer the Horseshoe stays as is if money isn't an object. I think the main divide is those who think the Horseshoe is "good enough" until that renovation is possible and those who see it as an actively hindering eyesore and limitation to home field advantage. Seems pretty clear Josh is in the first camp ... obviously I am in the second one!there are likely issues behind the scenes that Josh can’t & won’t discuss in public . It always comes down to money or lack thereof.Yeah, I know I am not alone ... just bummed apparently Josh is VERY much not on my side here.
I don’t get the sense SEZ is off the table for 10 years , but I get a sense it’s not going to happen in any way , shape or form for the next 5 years .
Yeah, I know I am not alone ... just bummed apparently Josh is VERY much not on my side here.
Most of the large contributors to any University would understand the return on capital. In the Mike White years - we not only sold out 75% of our games (with 72,000 people) - there were people who watched the non - televised games on closed circuit.
Why would there be any investment in re-model of the seating area when we haven't averaged 50,000 people / game over the past 5-10 years? Josh clearly has the right idea. Make Memorial Stadium a multi-use facility that drives revenue from different sources by improving all the aspects of the Memorial Stadium experience. Then if we start selling out games - he would be able to raise both the donations and the capital it would take to do a serious re-model.
Would SEZ temp bleachers during football season prevent facility multi-use?
And wouldn't it move our attendance capacity to ~62k, which is the trend we are clearly heading to, very shortly.
And finally, the suggestion was also to give a chunk of those seats away to charities, schools, etc... Makes sense to me and I would anticipate it should make sense to Josh too. I think many of us aren't quite following why it seems to not work for him.
Fighter of the Nightman
- Chicago, IL
I appreciate what you are saying, but I think I have already argued why temporary bleachers to fill in the huge Horseshoe gap do not rely on demand to sell more tickets ... they'll simply take "sold tickets" away from other nosebleed / undesirable seating locations like the corners of the East Balcony and the East Main seats tucked under the East Balcony. So unless the cost of temporary bleachers is just outrageous (which I guarantee you it is not), the downside really doesn't exist and the upside as a shockingly improved aesthetic and setup for Memorial Stadium on that end.
Again, seeing the value relies on one believing that the current setup of the Horseshoe (A) is more than just a quirky eyesore but rather something that actively and obviously detracts from the stadium's otherwise beautiful architecture and (B) materially hurts our home field advantage compared to our peers due to how ridiculously far away the fans are from the action. I personally think (A) and (B) are obvious ... but if someone doesn't, then he obviously wouldn't see the value in addressing the issue in the short term, and a "let's just wait until we can do something really cool" attitude makes more sense. I very much take the opposite view that there is not one single actual downside in filling in that space that can't be rebutted quite easily.
It would be far more expensive than you would guess. Between University policies and federal regulations, it would be pricy. Nothing Illinois does is cheap.
I believe this company did it before, they are not cheap: https://brandsafway.com/
I also think "low cost" seats are plentiful at Gies. Why add more? If you give them away, you'd end up with empty seats in direct line of the camera and/or you'd reduce tickets that you'd otherwise sell.
Clearly the DIA, at this time, doesn't think it's worth it.