How is Kansas football’s stadium renovation going? Here’s an update (and photos)

Kansas’ football team will hold its first practice of a highly anticipated 2024 season on Tuesday on the practice fields adjacent to David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

The Jayhawk players and coaches will be punting, passing, running and kicking just a long field goal attempt from a crew of construction workers who have been busy remodeling the west and north ends of the stadium since the end of the 2023 season, one in which the Jayhawks went 9-4 and rolled to a 49-36 victory over UNLV in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl in Arizona.

The Jayhawks, while listening to the drilling, can rest assured phase one of the program’s stadium project appears to be progressing nicely.

“Everything is on budget, on schedule. They are working so hard over there. Everything is in a great place,” KU athletic director Travis Goff said Thursday.

Goff noted that the Jayhawk players will move into the “renovated elements” of Anderson Family Football Complex on Monday as another 25,000 square feet of the complex will continue being erected as part of phase one of the football stadium/convention center project.

As of Thursday, concrete slabs have been put down in the lower bowl with “steel going all the way up to the Founders Club,” Goff said.

“What is not up there yet,” Goff added, “is the upper deck of the west side. Then we take (on) the corners of the northwest and north — new north field-level clubs. Attached to that north end is the conference center.”

He summarized, “That is phase one. That’s a $450 million project, the entirety of which will be completed in 12 1/2 months.”

Goff noted that “we are scheduled for Aug. 23, 2025, to host Fresno State in Lawrence. Week 0 … it’ll be a fun opportunity to open, celebrate with Lawrence, with the state, with our fans and dedicate that first phase.”

KU has raised $200 of $250 million goal for phase one

Regarding the athletic department paying for phase one renovations, Goff said “When you look at the components to get to $450 million (full cost of phase one), $250 million of that is a fundraising goal. As it stands today we are on the cusp of jumping over the $200 million mark. With some really important active conversations, we are hopeful they (donations) can be catalysts in moving us with momentum into planning for phase two.”

Phase two encompasses 30% of entire stadium project and tackles the east side and south side.

Whereas the current renovation project requires the Jayhawks to play six home games in Kansas City this season, any phase two project regarding the east bleachers and south end improvements likely would not require the team to play games out of town in any future season, Goff stated.

“We think it is very well within the realm of reason we could do that,” Goff said of playing in David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium as the final 30% of the Gateway Project football stadium renovation plan continues (once the necessary dollars are raised).

“We had a plan we could execute to play football games this fall right there,” he added, pointing toward the football stadium. “It would have been what you’d expect it to be, not ideal by any stretch of the imagination, but we could have played this fall in that stadium with just the east (available for seating) and with some adjacent seating. If those are the facts, I’d feel very strongly a 70% complete new build with construction on a segment could be operational for a season. That would be the goal.”

Goff noted, “we are entering this phase where we want to have another big fundraising year. We raised $150 million last year for Kansas Athletics, a record-shattering year. The notion is by fully funding the 70%, the $450 million will create momentum in partnership with a developer to tackle the east side.”

Goff said KU has reached agreement to partner with a development with details to come in a “handful of weeks.”

“That is a joint venture. The economic impact, the implications, along with potential integration with a potential new east side ... progress is probably even ahead of where I thought it’d be, just thinking about the full picture,” Goff stated.

Fieldhouse renovations have been fully funded

The current $55 million Allen Fieldhouse renovation project, which includes a new center scoreboard, upper level video boards, improved concessions and concourses as well as chairback seating on the west side, has been completely paid for through donor-generated philanthropy, Goff said.

The fieldhouse should be ready for basketball practice by early October, Goff said, with 15,300 fans to be welcomed for an Oct. 18 Late Night in the Phog. One thousand seats will be permanently lost as part of the renovation process .

Goff explained the need to reduce capacity from 16,300 to 15,300.

“It started with the notion of: What things are in play for us to do to really maximize the fan experience in Allen?” Goff said. “... There certainly is exposure to as many fans as possible as part of the evaluation. There are financial considerations as part of that evaluation. There is that commitment to the history, heritage and tradition we all love about historic Allen Fieldhouse ... and ultimately where we land is about 1,000 less seats, mostly implicated by the crows nest in the corners.

“That’s not just for experience, even though we’ll have two adjacent video boards up there that I think the fans will love. It’s also to really hide the mechanical that needed to come out, in particular the third upper level concourse.”

Goff said the renovations will help fans “have a great concourse experience with restrooms and concessions.”

“Taking that mechanical out necessitated the removal of the crows nest (in corners). We are adding and mirroring the chairbacks on that west side like we have on the east, so same number, same look, same feel on chairbacks (on both sides). That has some reduction in total capacity and accessibility, as we’ll be enhancing our ADA opportunities, giving additional ADA and better sight lines for our accessible patrons as well.”

Goff said the student body should not lose seats as part of the renovations.