Regents to vote on final design for Lower Soccer Field renovations

It's been a long time coming for one of WSU's most successful programs, but the women's soccer team should be getting what it has deserved for a long time: a sparkling facility in which to play. The Board of Regents will vote at their meeting next week on approving the final design, which you can see above.

This is different than the originally proposed design, which you can actually still see on the CAF's website. But from a practical and engineering stand point, this project is probably simpler than trying to build a grandstand on the north side of the field which drops off dramatically down to Shaw Street.

This design also features a great working press box which is something the Lower Soccer Field has needed desperately. It will get a dedicated area for the Pac-12 Networks TV broadcasts, a built out deck for the high center cameras and more room for radio broadcasts. For the fans, no more going down a narrow staircase to field level, you walk right in at the top of the stands. One area where this design really wins for me, though, is it seems to also still include the hill for seating behind the east goal. The earlier design seemed to essentially eliminate that with the long walk down to the proposed grandstands.

The final price tag for the renovations is $1.6 million, which the Regents have already approved so I'd expect this to quickly get a thumbs up next week. The proposal doesn't include a timeline for completion of the project but I'd expect it to get underway after the 2015 season ends.

You can view the whole PDF proposal to the Regents at this link or below.

Final Lower Soccer Field Design