Excellence Academy now 50% complete...

[RBB89]

field level pretty much sucks for someone actually wanting to view the game, though i can see other advantages it offers.

obviously the handicapped need accommodated, and easy access makes sense since wheelchairs don't do steps all that well.

for those who had those seats last yr who will be moved out, seems like the administration could attempt to make things right by them by throwing them enough points to keep them happy.

Agree and I think it’s a good idea to create more options for people who need accessible areas.

 

[FamousShoes22]

Agree and I think it’s a good idea to create more options for people who need accessible areas.

Need handrails for the steps...isn't that required by ADA for building upgrades.

 

[RBB89]

Need handrails for the steps...isn't that required by ADA for building upgrades.

I’m honestly not sure how that works. I know some stuff gets grandfathered in. They had to include those in the north end zone, so they did.

 

[UncleMark]

Need handrails for the steps...isn't that required by ADA for building upgrades.

I’m honestly not sure how that works. I know some stuff gets grandfathered in. They had to include those in the north end zone, so they did.

They've made a huge improvement in SSAH. Even for someone that doesn't need handrails, those steps could be treacherous.

Odd to me that Ken Nunn paid for them. Kinda shot himself in the foot, didn't he?

 

[oldcougar77]

They've made a huge improvement in SSAH. Even for someone that doesn't need handrails, those steps could be treacherous.

Odd to me that Ken Nunn paid for them. Kinda shot himself in the foot, didn't he?

Without knowing the specifics, a lot of factors can be feeding these changes. Local, state, and federal guidelines all impact new construction and disability access. Distance and estimated total exit time for disabled seating also are covered in local fire and disaster codes and have to be considered as well. The University's insurer is likely the source of some mandates dictating the placement and design of new handicap seating as well.

We deal with this in public schools every time we build or upgrade facilities so no doubt public universities fall under those same guidelines. For a place that might need to evacuate 50,000 people, I'm sure the standards are even more stringent. As far as what can be grandfathered, I don't have a clue as to what gets a pass or when. Every time we upgrade a facility in our school system, the old guidelines from the last project seem to have changed completely - sometimes in only a year or two (and sometimes in the middle of the planning or actual construction). That piece is maddening. One thing for sure, if you are noncompliant even by a whisker either your insurance company's inspector or some bureaucrat with a clipboard and a tape measure is going to catch it.

 

[RBB89]

Need handrails for the steps...isn't that required by ADA for building upgrades.

To elaborate on this, these new sections will be right off the entryways, so people won’t need to use any steps. There are railings, or will be, as you go up into the entryway from the concourse, but you won’t actually have to go up or down. In terms of having railings in the aisles throughout the rest of the stadium, I’m not sure how that works. Only the north end zone has them.

 

[RBB89]

They've made a huge improvement in SSAH. Even for someone that doesn't need handrails, those steps could be treacherous.

Odd to me that Ken Nunn paid for them. Kinda shot himself in the foot, didn't he?

Ha!

I guess when you LOVE IU BASKETBALL as much as he does, it overrules his business instincts.

 

[goody1986]

Worst part was the different heights of the two sides. I know the original plan was to have both sides the same height.....how lazy was it to just cut off 1/3 from the East side rather than to redesign for the same height......geez

I think the stadium is kinda eccentric now, what with the 4 distinct sections......it all goes together pretty well though.

I'd like to see a new, bigger press box....it's always seemed disproportional to me.....one of you guys needs to give $20M or so.

Agreed that the lopsided "design" was odd from the start, but the new addition is making that disjointedness worse. The SEZ was built at the same height as the lower east side, and it looks clean, integrated, and aesthetically pleasing. The lower yet height of the new addition is an aesthetic disaster. Glad we're getting much needed facilities improvement, and it will certainly look better than before, but it will not look as good as it should or as it could. Very disappointing.

 

[UncleMark]

Worst part was the different heights of the two sides. I know the original plan was to have both sides the same height.....how lazy was it to just cut off 1/3 from the East side rather than to redesign for the same height......geez

The "legend" I've always heard was that they essentially ran out of money, that they blew the budget on the excavating (didn't account for the extent of the bedrock they had to deal with) and so just quit at that point with the East stands.

 

[turney333]

Agreed that the lopsided "design" was odd from the start, but the new addition is making that disjointedness worse. The SEZ was built at the same height as the lower east side, and it looks clean, integrated, and aesthetically pleasing. The lower yet height of the new addition is an aesthetic disaster. Glad we're getting much needed facilities improvement, and it will certainly look better than before, but it will not look as good as it should or as it could. Very disappointing.

I understand the point that you are getting at, and do see the height differential as a limitation, but the possible alternatives in my mind would be much worse. There are several factors at play, the existing perimeter, height, and seating slope of the East stands (and NEZ), along with maintaining a continuous covered concourse. The most important factor was maintaining the existing perimeter, which they did. If you then just tried to raise the height of flat concourse roof/ceiling to the East height, then the it would protrude past the seating slope of both the east and west stands and would be by far the worst option. The other option would be to have the concourse roof/ceiling just be an extension of the East seating slope. In my mind, while this would add some cohesion, it would be this massive flat surface that would look clunky and out of place with the rest of the architecture.

 

[RBB89]

Agreed that the lopsided "design" was odd from the start, but the new addition is making that disjointedness worse. The SEZ was built at the same height as the lower east side, and it looks clean, integrated, and aesthetically pleasing. The lower yet height of the new addition is an aesthetic disaster. Glad we're getting much needed facilities improvement, and it will certainly look better than before, but it will not look as good as it should or as it could. Very disappointing.

If you don’t like the design of something, that’s perfectly fine, but there’s no reason to be hyperbolic about it. It is in no way an aesthetic disaster.

Like, I seriously doubt that there’s going to be articles and comments all over the Internet calling this a disaster:

There are a ton of stadiums out there that aren’t just perfect bowls and have all kinds of different exteriors. The fact that ours looks kind of similar all the way around, especially with the towers on both ends, is a success to me.

 

[Hoosier_Hack]

They've made a huge improvement in SSAH. Even for someone that doesn't need handrails, those steps could be treacherous.

Odd to me that Ken Nunn paid for them. Kinda shot himself in the foot, didn't he?

I went through this with my father as he started to falter in his older age. Him and I had season tickets before he got to where he couldn’t go anymore.

The thing that I noticed or thought would be a huge help with my father was a more organized or obvious transport from the parking lot to the stadium. It was a very long walk for him. I started taking the parking pass provided for the lot between AH and Memorial Stadium but we don’t care for the tailgating on the asphalt... anyway, I know they have golf carts roaming around but there isn’t many and it would make a difference. I think he was picked up once....

 

[muubell]

The "legend" I've always heard was that they essentially ran out of money, that they blew the budget on the excavating (didn't account for the extent of the bedrock they had to deal with) and so just quit at that point with the East stands.

That sounds about right. The thing to remember is that the footings are in place so that if they ever wanted to expand the east stands to match the west, it would be easy to do. I think that showed some foresight and if you're forced into making a change midstream, it was a much better option to leave room for a later addition than to try to redesign the whole shebang so it matched on both sides.

 

[UncleMark]

That sounds about right. The thing to remember is that the footings are in place so that if they ever wanted to expand the east stands to match the west, it would be easy to do. I think that showed some foresight and if you're forced into making a change midstream, it was a much better option to leave room for a later addition than to try to redesign the whole shebang so it matched on both sides.

My understanding as well. Although I'm not sure about the forethought -- I think the footers were in place as part of the original planning for both sides to be the same height, and they were done before it was decided to go with the shorter East side.

 

[turney333]

That sounds about right. The thing to remember is that the footings are in place so that if they ever wanted to expand the east stands to match the west, it would be easy to do. I think that showed some foresight and if you're forced into making a change midstream, it was a much better option to leave room for a later addition than to try to redesign the whole shebang so it matched on both sides.

I've always wondered how they would configure an addition to the East stands. While its highly plausible that the seating bowl would match the West, I think its almost a guarantee that they put more indoor space underneath (like the North and South Endzones) which make the old footings obsolete. Also, a need for more interior space will most likely occur before a need for more seats, and a building/extension onto the East stands seems like the most likely spot to keep the cohesive arrangement of facilities, just would need it to be engineered to be built on top of