Where should LaTech rebuild baseball stadium

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Originally Posted by tenacious_dog

I haven't thought about the ADA compliance thing. There are a few people who sit around me that the steps in our baseball stadium causes them a real problem. The steepness of the steps to get to the seating area then the little half steps between rows.

One older fellow fell twice this year. Or at least went to his knees. It's pretty clear he has a malady that affects his gait and balance. But he's a loyal Bulldog and he's by golly going to sit in his seat. Guys like him would benefit greatly from more modern design and ADA compliance.

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Does ADA have a "grandfather clause". I assume that or just love for EllAye Tech is what has kept us out of the dahghouse for years.

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Originally Posted by Dixonfor6

We don’t need to build anything with more than 3000 seats. We get barely over 1000 people at the games

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Please tell us something we DON'T know. Everybody knows that...so you contributed absolutely nothing to the discussion.

https://i.imgur.com/nJWUxrg.png

I had some time on my hands and decided to show everyone my Microsoft Paint skills. I hope all of you designers are proud. This is basically what I would like for Baseball, Softball, and for a future indoor practice facility.

Baseball- Move the stadium closer to the corner and have both sides parallel to the streets. This allows more space for the stadium and field. We would lose some parking but I'm fine with that. No one looks at parking lots and thinks they add something positive to the aesthetics. The pitching/batting practice building is moved to the right side. The right field hill is expanded and we keep the train and apartment view in the outfield.

Softball- Flip the alignment and have the back facing the intersection of Alabama and Tech Dr like the baseball stadium. The parking lot is then placed behind the stadium in order to block its view, but not much if any parking should be lost. Have both the softball and baseball's facades face the intersection and they hopefully will have two similar brick designs to make them match each other and campus.

Electronic Message Board- There is a little square on the corner of Alabama and Tech in front of the softball facility. This would be for an electronic message board. That corner is possibly the busiest corner on Tech's campus, we should be taking advantage of that intersection to promote athletic events or just to deliver messages to the public. Southern Miss has one and it's what inspired me to put it on there as there is extra space on that corner in my plan.
http://news.usm.edu/sites/default/fi...sign 004_0.jpg



Soccer- The stands are centered to be symmetrical but not much else is changed.

Soccer/Softball building- The building between the softball and soccer facilities will contain each sports locker rooms and offices. It will also have an outdoor spot for a food stand during softball and soccer games.

Indoor practice facility- This is just a wish of mine, but I'd like to see the indoor practice facility placed where the existing practice field is so we don't have to change the running track and we can connect it to the intramural center with a walkway over Tech Drive. Instead of an outdoor practice field, now the football team has an indoor practice facility in its spot and if they need to practice something outdoors, they can use the stadium or the field in the middle of the track. So nothing really changes for their layout. By connecting it to the intramural center, this can be used as a student recruitment tool effectively doubling the size of intramural center. It would allow intramural sports, gym classes, student activities, or activities in general to have a huge open indoor space to use while the football team isn't using it. Imagine the possibilities of being able to go to one facility to workout in the gym, swim laps in a pool, play basketball, or do sprints in an indoor football field.

Tech Drive Walkway- The walkway over Tech would contain the name of Louisiana Tech University across it and would be a great way to welcome people to the university. Hopefully they would also put an electronic message board on it to display messages about upcoming sports events or messages in general. It also could be used used as a crosswalk across Tech Drive as there is no pedestrian crosswalk unless you walk down to Alabama. Here is an example from Chalmette to give an idea, but of course ours would be much better looking.

http://media.nola.com/education_impa...5d913bc06b.jpg

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Originally Posted by HogDawg

Please tell us something we DON'T know. Everybody knows that...so you contributed absolutely nothing to the discussion.

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You called two stadiums of that~3000 capacity “rinky dink” and “small” then continued to post a stadium with a capacity of 9300. My comment was actually very fitting.

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Originally Posted by PawDawg

Does ADA have a "grandfather clause". I assume that or just love for EllAye Tech is what has kept us out of the dahghouse for years.

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Yes, old facilities are grandfathered. But I believe if you do structural renovations you have to become ADA compliant. I have to think ADA compliance is as much a part of what's being looked at with the current facility as its structural integrity. It can be an expensive proposition.

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Originally Posted by Dawgonit

https://i.imgur.com/nJWUxrg.png

I had some time on my hands and decided to show everyone my Microsoft Paint skills. I hope all of you designers are proud. This is basically what I would like for Baseball, Softball, and for a future indoor practice facility.

Baseball- Move the stadium closer to the corner and have both sides parallel to the streets. This allows more space for the stadium and field. We would lose some parking but I'm fine with that. No one looks at parking lots and thinks they add something positive to the aesthetics. The pitching/batting practice building is moved to the right side. The right field hill is expanded and we keep the train and apartment view in the outfield.

Softball- Flip the alignment and have the back facing the intersection of Alabama and Tech Dr like the baseball stadium. The parking lot is then placed behind the stadium in order to block its view, but not much if any parking should be lost. Have both the softball and baseball's facades face the intersection and they hopefully will have two similar brick designs to make them match each other and campus.

Electronic Message Board- There is a little square on the corner of Alabama and Tech in front of the softball facility. This would be for an electronic message board. That corner is possibly the busiest corner on Tech's campus, we should be taking advantage of that intersection to promote athletic events or just to deliver messages to the public. Southern Miss has one and it's what inspired me to put it on there as there is extra space on that corner in my plan.
http://news.usm.edu/sites/default/fi...sign 004_0.jpg



Soccer- The stands are centered to be symmetrical but not much else is changed.

Soccer/Softball building- The building between the softball and soccer facilities will contain each sports locker rooms and offices. It will also have an outdoor spot for a food stand during softball and soccer games.

Indoor practice facility- This is just a wish of mine, but I'd like to see the indoor practice facility placed where the existing practice field is so we don't have to change the running track and we can connect it to the intramural center with a walkway over Tech Drive. Instead of an outdoor practice field, now the football team has an indoor practice facility in its spot and if they need to practice something outdoors, they can use the stadium or the field in the middle of the track. So nothing really changes for their layout. By connecting it to the intramural center, this can be used as a student recruitment tool effectively doubling the size of intramural center. It would allow intramural sports, gym classes, student activities, or activities in general to have a huge open indoor space to use while the football team isn't using it. Imagine the possibilities of being able to go to one facility to workout in the gym, swim laps in a pool, play basketball, or do sprints in an indoor football field.

Tech Drive Walkway- The walkway over Tech would contain the name of Louisiana Tech University across it and would be a great way to welcome people to the university. Hopefully they would also put an electronic message board on it to display messages about upcoming sports events or messages in general. It also could be used used as a crosswalk across Tech Drive as there is no pedestrian crosswalk unless you walk down to Alabama. Here is an example from Chalmette to give an idea, but of course ours would be much better looking.

http://media.nola.com/education_impa...5d913bc06b.jpg

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I like everything you have proposed in your drawing. I think all our athletic facilities should be in one area and the elevated crosswalk is icing on the cake. We keep the apartment view of the stadium and it all makes a grand entrance to the campus. Great job!

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Originally Posted by PawDawg

What I thought you were thinking.

Stuff ages and wears out. Complete renovations in order to save the face of old are not always economical or the best answer. Do you really think our old structure is unique? Also, I figured you were all about becoming ADA compliant.

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A rebar-concrete structure really should last longer than 50-60 years. Especially one as lightly used as Tech's baseball structure. It aint like we've been driving 18-wheelers on it.

You are correct that rehabilitation is not always the cheapest option. One determines that with study -- some kind of C/B analysis. Do we have one? Is it publicly available?

Our old structure is unique to us. And if we keep it a little longer, it will soon be unique in the state, and maybe the nation. Baby Boomers love to destroy the places and institutions that were built for their own benefit by their parents. If the Shack can manage to just outlive the Me Generation, it might be safe from vainglorious goobers for another 100 years.

ADA compliance = red herring. Lots of flexibility for existing buildings. Current issues are not insurmountable via retrofit.

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Originally Posted by Champ967

You are correct that rehabilitation is not always the cheapest option. One determines that with study -- some kind of C/B analysis. Do we have one? Is it publicly available?

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FEMA uses C/B analysis as part of their cost determinations -

I haven't heard ANYTHING from inside of Tech that varies from the initial assessment that baseball is a total loss

I'm pretty sure anyone can file a FOI request and get copies of all correspondence between TECH and FEMA and the adjusters - but 3 weeks into the process would kinda seem useless

For those of us that attend the events there know the shape the super structure was in pre-storm (only area that did not leak was the new locker room area and coaches offices built a few years ago) and then the force and sheer magnitude of ripping the concrete roof off of the facility was probably the equivalent of an earthquake hitting the facility...

Couple that with the fact that the facility was not ADA accessible and any major renovation/rebuild would of had to take ADA into effect - then the costs to build new could be within the measures to justify raising and rebuilding

And add into the fact that it was constructed in 1970-1971 and state construction contracts during that time (EWE era) were iffy at best where quality and specifications were concerned...

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Originally Posted by Dwayne From Minden

And add into the fact that it was constructed in 1970-1971 and state construction contracts during that time (EWE era) were iffy at best where quality and specifications were concerned...

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ya know, that's a really good point.

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Originally Posted by Champ967

A rebar-concrete structure really should last longer than 50-60 years. Especially one as lightly used as Tech's baseball structure. It aint like we've been driving 18-wheelers on it.

You are correct that rehabilitation is not always the cheapest option. One determines that with study -- some kind of C/B analysis. Do we have one? Is it publicly available?

Our old structure is unique to us. And if we keep it a little longer, it will soon be unique in the state, and maybe the nation. Baby Boomers love to destroy the places and institutions that were built for their own benefit by their parents. If the Shack can manage to just outlive the Me Generation, it might be safe from vainglorious goobers for another 100 years.

ADA compliance = red herring. Lots of flexibility for existing buildings. Current issues are not insurmountable via retrofit.

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ADA is not a red herring. When I moved my offices to the building I'm in now, ADA for the downstairs was pretty straight forward. But according to the Fire Marshall if I put a stairway inside the building so I could have offices upstairs I was going to have to put in an elevator for ADA access. Prohibitively expensive.

Wouldn't be surprised if Tech does a renovation we'll have to put an elevator to the press box.

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Originally Posted by Dwayne From Minden

And add into the fact that it was constructed in 1970-1971 and state construction contracts during that time (EWE era) were iffy at best where quality and specifications were concerned...

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Witness the old CAB building. All sorts of problems with that thing. Foundation started cracking in just a few years.

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Originally Posted by tenacious_dog

Witness the old CAB building. All sorts of problems with that thing. Foundation started cracking in just a few years.

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And the rumblings of 20+ trains daily for 50+ years with cheap construction and you have all the evidence you need for the major structural problems before the storm ever hit...

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Originally Posted by tenacious_dog

Witness the old CAB building. All sorts of problems with that thing. Foundation started cracking in just a few years.

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Originally Posted by Dwayne From Minden

And the rumblings of 20+ trains daily for 50+ years with cheap construction and you have all the evidence you need for the major structural problems before the storm ever hit...

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Great points guys.

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Originally Posted by Dwayne From Minden

And add into the fact that it was constructed in 1970-1971 and state construction contracts during that time (EWE era) were iffy at best where quality and specifications were concerned...

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Originally Posted by tenacious_dog

Witness the old CAB building. All sorts of problems with that thing. Foundation started cracking in just a few years.

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My younger brother graduated Tech a couple years after me. He was sitting in the CAB auditorium one morning in a QA class and they heard a "pop". As they sat there they all watched a new crack in the ceiling run from the front of the room all the way to the back wall. Dr Rice dead panned, " Well, you don't see that everyday." :laugh:

I'm a fan of renovating old buildings if they have good "bones". The CAB had terminal osteoporosis.