UC Davis

[SloStang]

Re: UC Davis

Yes, and I think the feeling was that it was an awful lot to pay to build an 11,700 seat stadium. Granted, it's expandable, but that's a whole new pile of money.

There are a whole lot of earth quake building codes in California and they are even more on facilities on State property. I am sure that it could be done for a whole lot less in South Dakota because of this.

[SD-STATE]

Re: UC Davis

There are a whole lot of earth quake building codes in California and they are even more on facilities on State property. I am sure that it could be done for a whole lot less in South Dakota because of this.

I would also think that the excavation work to get the "bowl" is not on the cheap end. If they were to do that at coughlin it would probably turn into a duck pond.

[MontanaRabbit]

Re: UC Davis

There are a whole lot of earth quake building codes in California and they are even more on facilities on State property. I am sure that it could be done for a whole lot less in South Dakota because of this.

California has the strictest building codes in the US. Plus the cost of labor, materials, etc. would also be more than SD. The exact same building would be cheaper in SD let alone you wouldn't have to do any seismic design which would lower the cost.

[BTownJack]

Re: UC Davis

California has the strictest building codes in the US. Plus the cost of labor, materials, etc. would also be more than SD. The exact same building would be cheaper in SD let alone you wouldn't have to do any seismic design which would lower the cost.

I happened to be out at the Davis game and I was told on top of already high builiding causes already stated here, Hurricane Katrina and Rita hit while the construction of their staduim was beginning. This caused construction prices to skyrocket and therefore they had to cut back a lot of the features of the stadium.

The biggest thing I thought was wrong with the stadim was the pitch of the stadium seats was far too shallow. That combined with the bowling effect of the stadium made even the prime seats on the 50-yard line are a long way from the field. And since the pitch of the seats is shallow I would be surprised if the people in the first 4-5 rows behind the benches can even see much of the field while seated.

I think that SDSU could get a lot more out of 30+ million and we do things a bit differently with the money.

[SD-STATE]

Re: UC Davis

I happened to be out at the Davis game and I was told on top of already high builiding causes already stated here, Hurricane Katrina and Rita hit while the construction of their staduim was beginning. This caused construction prices to skyrocket and therefore they had to cut back a lot of the features of the stadium.

The biggest thing I thought was wrong with the stadim was the pitch of the stadium seats was far too shallow. That combined with the bowling effect of the stadium made even the prime seats on the 50-yard line are a long way from the field. And since the pitch of the seats is shallow I would be surprised if the people in the first 4-5 rows behind the benches can even see much of the field while seated.

I think that SDSU could get a lot more out of 30+ million and we do things a bit differently with the money.

I agree, as long as they do it right and first rate, I will be more than satisfied. We haven't waited this long for them to rush it and cut corners, if it takes a few more years to do it right then so be it.

[Nidaros]

Re: UC Davis

I would also think that the excavation work to get the "bowl" is not on the cheap end. If they were to do that at coughlin it would probably turn into a duck pond.

I asked Dr. Oien more than once about a bowl at CAS and he told me that the water table is way too low so yes it would become a duck pond. We would need to post no hunting signs during football season LOL.

[NightHawk78]

Re: UC Davis

lol.....well, SDSU would have a hockey arena in place during the winter due to the high water table.......

[MontanaRabbit]

Re: UC Davis

I asked Dr. Oien more than once about a bowl at CAS and he told me that the water table is way too low so yes it would become a duck pond. We would need to post no hunting signs during football season LOL.

The area around CAS is a marsh. Just east of the stadium is wetlands. Storm water runoff for part of the city runs past the east side of CAS. So, building a bowl would be BAD BAD as Nidaros has indicated.

[Vision]

Re: UC Davis

It would be nice if they could add dirt and use retaining walls like Colorado State:

I'm sure cement walls are not real cheap, but if they did this atleast in the South endzone it would add a lot of lawn seating, and it could bring the concourse level off the ground which would help with traffic control, and there wouldn't be a walkway right in front of first row like the current stadium.

[thebluehatman]

Re: UC Davis

I believe concrete these days is around 96 dollars a cubic yard. At least that was the last value thrown out in one of my building systems classes earlier this semester.

[NorCalJack]

Re: UC Davis

I saw the UC Davis stadium for the first time on Saturday and I thought it was a very nice facility. Of course it is new and has all the amenities you would want. I did not like the bowl effect however. Basically there was a nice breeze that day, but because you were down in a hole you did not feel the breeze. The American Flag was flapping in the breeze, but you did not feel it in your seat. When we went up to get some concessions at half time, the breeze felt good and we watched the entire 2nd half standing above the seating area to get the benefit of the breeze. It was only 80 degrees and sunny that day, but in the seats it was probably 90 degrees. I went to the Cal-Poly game last year and although their stadium was not complete at the time, I think the Cal-Poly stadium is better for the fans than the UC Davis stadium.

Here is Terry V. article on the new UC Davis stadium

DAVIS, Calif. - The first question upon arriving at Aggie Stadium: Where is Aggie Stadium?

Because the price of building materials skyrocketed following Hurricane Katrina, UC Davis built its new $32-million football and lacrosse facility largely into the ground rather than above it. "Lake Davis" the gigantic hole was called during 20 months of construction.

These days, the on-campus stadium with artificial turf is better described as a sunken, quaint and usually sun-soaked bowl.
The second obvious inquiry: Since athletic departments are becoming more dependent on outside financial sources - and this northern California university completed an expensive NCAA Division I re-classification only this summer - where did that money come from?

The answer may be more impressive than the stadium itself.
Though the Aggies received contributions from donors and corporate sponsors, most of the money came from the students. They approved a $67-million referendum to pay for the football stadium, a student recreation center, and the largest outdoor aquatic complex in California's university system.

They did so in 1999, before any plans had been put on paper, and just five years after approving a fee increase that ostensibly saved the football and wrestling programs.

"Our students here on campus were very supportive of three new facilities," Aggies athletic director Greg Warzecka said. "They wanted to see it built. They actually voted to raise their fees to fund the facilities."
Nonetheless, the rising costs of iron, steel and copper - not to mention the inherently high cost of living in California - complicated the process.

The project wound up costing roughly $10 million more than first planned even though sacrifices - like waiting to install lights and forgoing a sports medicine space - were made in order to offset costs. Associate athletic director Bob Bullis called it "value engineering." That's not to say that UC Davis has nothing to show for its considerable dollars.
There are 108 football lockers - divided into two rooms that smell like new cars. There are also 52 women's lacrosse lockers, 32 concession stands, team meeting rooms, an apparel store, a club room for booster gatherings, a towering video board, flat-screen TVs aplenty and plug-and-play access to ease the production of television broadcasts.

Including the steep grass berms in each end zone, the stadium holds about 10,800 fans, some 3,000 more than Toomey Field - the Aggies' antiquated former home of nearly 60 years. Season-ticket sales have jumped from 700 to 2,500.

Although there are no luxury boxes (yet), all of the 600 chair-back seats located below the press box - sold in groups of eight for a one-time, lifetime fee of $20,000 plus the cost of tickets - have been claimed, generating $1.3 million immediately.

To read the entire article, click on the link below.

http://www.argusleader.com/apps/pbcs...34/1002/SPORTS

Go State!!!