Tennessee athletic director John Currie met with Tennessee’s board of trustees on Thursday to finalize plans for a $340 million renovation to Neyland Stadium. The trustees approved the renovation, and Phase I of the project is slated to begin during the summer of 2018.
On Friday, the university released renderings of the approved renovations as well as Currie’s outline of the project.
During his presentation to the Board of Trustees on Thursday, Currie outlined five main project goals:
- Enhance the Neyland Stadium gameday fan experience with modernized restrooms, improved concessions offerings, quality and availability as well as expanded and upgraded concourses
- Improve safety, security and access, including ingress and egress flow
- Elevate the visual presentation of Neyland Stadium to reflect architectural standards of the university’s Master Plan
- Prepare Neyland Stadium for another century of service to future generations of Tennessee fans
- Proceed in a fiscally-responsible manner, delivering value and benefit to the university community
Currie also stated that he believes it’s important to maintain a 100,000-plus capacity for the stadium, saying it’s a “point of pride” for Tennessee fans.
According to UT, Currie “outlined a five-source funding model for Phase I that does not require any state dollars or subsidies. The updated plan calls for more work to be completed sooner, while costs are lower; this adjustment also enables the project to benefit from the current low-interest-rate environment.”
Phase I is scheduled to be finished before the start of the 2020 football season, and the entire project is supposed to be done before the 2021 season.
Some highlights of the renovations include:
- Expanding the entire concourses on the south and east sides of the stadium, increasing the current 0.5 square feet of space per patron to an average of three square feet per patron, and adding new table space and family areas within the concourse footprint
- The south end—or highly trafficked “riverfront view”—of Neyland Stadium, will be aesthetically transformed to provide a magnificent first impression of the venue that is befitting of its storied history and prominence
Here are renderings of most of the renovations expected to take place. All photos/renderings are from the University of Tennessee.
