Newport Football Stadium Has Been Condemned

[RetiredFan]

I don't disagree with the business side of the topic.  The kick the can down the road always comes home to roost.  Other than a couple of minor efforts to fix the problem, the stadium is in the same poor condition it was when our son played his games there in youth football and eventually in high school as their home field.  My point is where do the youth teams, middle school and high school teams go to now because of poor oversight. 

[happ]

On 4/25/2022 at 7:57 PM, gbballfan21 said:

It always drove me crazy that the tunnel to the locker rooms and the center of the pressbox weren’t aligned with the 50 yard line! 

In all my 40 years of playing at Newport Stadium for NewCath and watching NewCath games there i never noticed that.

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

Newport High School football stadium to be replaced | Fox19 News

Per the article, the Newport Independent BOE voted unanimously to fund the first phase of the demolition/construction project. The current grandstand will be replaced with a 1500 seat grandstand with the intent of having it ready for next school year.  They are currently estimating $2.5 Million for a new grandstand. The school has $1 MM to put forward and will be borrowing $2MM for the first phase, which appears to be demolition/replacement of the grandstand. The extra $500K is for contingency.

"Future phases of the project, which would be completed when more borrowing capacity becomes available, could include installation of a new track and construction of a concession stand, restrooms, locker rooms, a ticketing area, training facility and new field lighting. The district also plans to seek private donations through a fundraising effort, the district said."

[TheBearsFavoriteHat]

On 6/20/2022 at 4:54 PM, happ said:

In all my 40 years of playing at Newport Stadium for NewCath and watching NewCath games there I never noticed that.

I don't believe it was that way until they put the turf in. The field was shifted to move the southwest corner of the field off of the track. Until the turf you could catch a touchdown pass in Lane 1. 

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

So circling back to review the time line of what's been going on at Newport Stadium:

Oct 8, 2021
Newport played their most recent home football game at Newport Stadium.

Nov 12, 2021
Newport Central Catholic  played their most recent home football game at Newport Stadium.

Apr 11, 2022 (Approx.)
Newport Stadium, grandstand and pressbox failed state inspections and were condemned.

Oct 12, 2022
Newport Board of Education voted unanimously to fund the demolition of the existing Newport Stadium and the installation of a new 1,500-seat grandstand and pressbox.

May 8, 2023
Demolition of Newport Stadium begins. (See Thread: Will Newport have any home games in 2023?)

May 15, 2023
Newport releases their 2023 football schedule, announcing that their first home game since Oct 8, 2021 will be played against Lloyd Memorial on Sep 22, 2023.

Jul 19, 2023
Newport BOE is notified by the contractor installing the new grandstand and pressbox at Newport Stadium that there is a 2 month delay on the project. Project delivery is pushed to the end of October, 2023. Newport's football team was scheduled to play their final home game of the regular season on October 12th against Bellevue, thus likely wiping out a second full season of home football games.

Nov 4, 2023
After finishing second in 1A District 3, Newport's football team is awarded home field advantage for their first-round game of the 1A playoffs. Their game against Covington Holy Cross is hosted at Highlands due to stadium incompletion.

Feb 11, 2023
Following the completion of grandstand and pressbox construction, rumors begin circulating that flood zone regulations at Newport Stadium are preventing the construction of restrooms, locker rooms and a concession stand at the stadium. (See Thread: Will Newport have any home games in 2024?)