KISD to spend $70 million on new football stadium, complex improvements

The added funds will go to drainage, utilities, a parent drop-off driveway and a maintenance building that will serve the entire complex.

“The new stadium [project] is different from the student activity facilities complex [project] and I think that’s kind of where the confusion is,” DiPetta said. “The new stadium has always been $58 million.”

KISD’s in-house architect, Peter McElwain, said the stadium is on weather-dependent pace for a mid-July “substantial” completion date, which will allow the stadium to open in time for next year’s football season.

McElwain and in-house project manager Nathan Fuchs said that of the various aspects of the project, the field house is the furthest along and is expected to be ready for heating, ventilation and air conditioning start-up by late December or early January after the stadium receives permanent power.

The stadium’s seating will be complete by late December, and preparation work on the field is projected to begin in the spring. All parking lots are complete, and various road improvements to help mitigate game traffic will be complete when the stadium opens, McElwain and Fuchs said.

“There’s a lot that goes into creating the synergy that will be there between both stadiums,” McElwain said. “It’s going to be a beacon for our community, and it’s going to provide a tremendous amount of flexible usage opportunities for our students as well as the community.”

DiPetta said the only other major project expense is the live action media broadcast system II, also known as LAMBS II, that will control the new stadium’s video scoreboard. KISD’s board of trustees approved funding not to exceed $1.875 million for LAMBS II at its Dec. 12 meeting.

Ben Rolens, KISD’s general manager of special events, reservations and marketing, said during a presentation at the board’s Dec. 5 workshop that LAMBS II is expected to pay for itself through advertising revenue streams.

LAMBS I at Rhodes Stadium—which is student-operated—has generated $2.6 million in general operating fund revenue in seven years, and LAMBS II at the second stadium is projected to generate $7.5 million in general operating fund revenue in the next 10 years, he said. The district also uses the broadcast system to provide certification opportunities to students.

“I would say the [LAMBS] program has been quite successful; I’m very proud of this program,” Rolens said at the meeting. “It’s provided a world-class opportunity for our students to receive certifications and/or jobs if they want to go straight into the workplace.”

KISD’s board approved a 10-year, $2.5 million sponsorship contract with Academy Sports + Outdoors for the athletics portion of the complex at its Dec. 12 meeting. The group also authorized Superintendent Lance Hindt to solicit names and form a committee to name the second stadium.