Account Email:    Password:  
 
   
*** BOARDMAN TOWNSHIP GOVERNMENT CENTER NORTH WING CLOSED TO PUBLIC FOR REPAIRS FEB 8 TO EARLY APRIL *****  
 Friday March 29, 2024
    Boardman Weather
    
    
    % humidity
Buy Boardman News Photos
View Current News
View / Purchase Ads and Announcements
 
 
  Ode To Boardman Stadium: Part II  
  No Pomp, Pageantry For Site That Served The Boardman For 73 Years:   October 29, 2014 Edition  
     Boardman High School’s football team gave old Boardman Stadium a great send-off last Friday night when Joe Ignazio’s Spartans pinned a 21-13 defeat on Canton McKinley.
      A sparse crowd saw Boardman defeat the Pups for the first time since 1995, and there was no pomp and pageantry to usher the old stadium out after it had faithfully served the community for 73 years.
      The first game at the stadium was played on Nov. 15, 1941, the day after Armistice Day, when the Spartans, under Head Coach Rib Allen, defeated Sebring, 21-7, to win the Little Brown Jug.
      According to Boardman Local Schools Director of Operations, Tim Saxton, the Spartans will open play next season in their new stadium on the campus of Boardman High School. That would be the second game of the season, set for Fri., Sept. 4 against Cardinal Mooney.
      A fund-raising drive to build the new stadium began three years ago, spearheaded by the Boardman Booster Club, formed in 1981 and sanctioned by the Boardman Local School Board.
      To date the club has raised some $1.31 million in pledges of the estimated $2.56 million needed to build the new site, not including a construction budget of $325,000.
      Phase I of the project was completed this year when an artificial turf was installed at the site of the new stadium at a cost of $760,000, including $80,000 for an asphalt track.
      According to the Booster Club, $1.04 million is still needed by Mar., 2015 to complete phase two of the project that includes $940,000 for ‘home’ seating, and $100,000 for a 10-ft. by 85-ft. press box.
      Phase three of the project, that according to the Booster Club will be completed by the fall of 2016, or sooner if funding is available, includes $660,000 for 3,000 ‘visitor’ seats; and another $200,000 for concessions, restrooms and lockerooms.
      According to Team 8e Architecture, of Canfield, that has been selected by the local school board to oversee the stadium project, a $200,000, 10 ft. by 30 ft. video scoreboard will also be added to the new stadium.
      The Booster Club says old Boardman Stadium lacks storage and locker facilities. For example, at halftime, the home team gathers inside the Center Middle School Auditorium; and parking is limited.
      Now, the Boosters claim the current location of the old stadium “is a barrier to creating a culture that promotes community among all high school students, and...moreover is creates unnecessary transportation costs (for student athletes and members of the Spartan Marching Band).”
      The Boosters say that “sporting and music events are major social gatherings in Boardman and a new stadium will enhance those experiences and add pride in our community,” to the point the new facilities “could make our teams and marching band more competitive.”
      A new turf at the site of the proposed stadium was installed last summer because “more than enough funds had been raised...to enable this year’s student athletes to enjoy [the turf] for practices, athletic contests and physical education classes,” the Booster Club said.
      Additionally, the Booster Club says that “Boardman believes in creating well-rounded students with attention to academics, athletics and the arts.”
      Boardman High School’s major sports fund-raising teams have been in the dumps for several years, as attendance at football and basketball games have declined, commensurate with the achievements of those teams. Old Boardman Stadium is not the reason the Spartan grid program is something like 5-26 in its last 31 games, and the Boardman High School gym is not the reason the Spartans basketball team can’t win.
      Ode To Boardman Stadium, Part 1, can be found at the Boardman News Website, or Facebook
 
FEATURED    |    SUBSCRIBE    |    ADS    |    NEWS    |    COMMUNITY    |    SPORTS    |    ARCHIVE    |    PHOTOS    |    CONTACT
Boardman News 2024©
Contact Boardman News Boardman News Archive Sports in Boardman The Boardman Community Advertisements Subscribe to the Boardman News Boardman News Home and Features
Boardman News on Facebook Boardman News on Twitter