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Last week, big white letters that spell out “Jack Trice Stadium” were being added to the back of the scoreboard. The west concourse had already been paved and the concession stands and bathrooms nearly finished, while work was still being done to new suites and the club section. Furniture still needed to be moved in, signs put up and flower beds planted, but all that will be completed by the first home game on Aug. 28.

While construction crews continued to race against bad weather to complete the $19.5 million football stadium project on time and on budget, Iowa State University’s athletic department has been working hard to sell new premium seating and get fans to renew season tickets despite redoing its seating chart. It also is seeking more donations to complete $65 million in additional renovations.

“For the most part, fans have stepped up and done what we’ve asked them to do despite tough economic times,” said Frank Nogel, senior associate athletics director for external relations at Iowa State. “I think our message has been pretty clear from day one what we’re trying to do to elevate the program, and they’re responding.”

Iowa State is just one of several schools across the United States to undertake major football stadium renovation projects in recent years, and all have used premium seating to help fund them. The University of Iowa completed an $89 million renovation of Kinnick Stadium two years ago and now has a waiting list for its premium seating.

“The whole country is going to that,” said Mark Jennings, associate athletic director at the University of Iowa. “Almost every Division I school football (department) is going to eventually have some form of premium seating like this.”

ISU ups its game

Jack Trice Stadium’s first renovation phase started the Sunday after Iowa State’s final game last fall and will finish up this month. It’s the first major renovation to the fan section since the stadium opened in 1975 and includes more restrooms and concession stands, a west concourse that has doubled in size, and better entrances and exits so fans can move more easily throughout the stadium.

The project also has increased the number of private suites to 45 from 23 on the west side of the stadium, with two new 24-seat suites and the rest being 16-seat suites. The club section – which looked “like a 1970s basement,” Nogel said – was completely gutted, the ceiling raised and skylights added to give it more of a sports bar feel. Patrons will have access to an enclosed indoor section with a bar, where a pre-game buffet will be served, and a 540-seat outdoor section with heating.

“It’s outstanding, the upgrade from what it used to be,” said Ben Bruns, project manager for Weitz Iowa, the general contractor. Bruns played center for ISU from 1996 to 2000, when the football team recorded the first bowl win in school history. Now he has stickers on his construction helmet to remind him of the college construction projects he has worked on, including ones at Drake University and Buena Vista University.

Bruns has been involved in planning for the second phase of the Jack Trice renovations, which will include expanding the concourse on the east side, adding more restrooms and concession stands, and adding seating and suites to the south end zone. Construction will begin as soon as funding is in place and the Iowa Board of Regents approves the plans.

Tickets for sale

Premium seating and private donations have funded the entire first phase of the Jack Trice Stadium project, Nogel said, with a mix of business and individual support.

All but two of the private suites have been leased at $40,000 a year for the 16-seat suites and $60,000 for the 24-seat suites. The suites have a 10-year commitment, with the price going up 3.5 percent each year.

Ninety-five percent of the club tickets have been sold, with a price of $1,500 per season ticket plus a required $5,000 donation to the Cyclone Club that qualifies the donor to purchase up to four tickets. In other words, it costs $11,000 annually to buy four season tickets in the club section.

Adding the suites removed 2,000 regular seats and the Athletic Department also went through the process of re-indexing, or revising how it allocates seats in its regular stadium seating sections, because it had not been adjusted for several years. ISU looked at the donation levels from ticket buyers and in some sections increased the amount people had to give to sit in a given spot.

“It’s never going to be easy when you’re asking people to give more money or pay more for their tickets or move somewhere they’ve been sitting for 20 or 30 years, but unfortunately in our business, those are the realties we’re faced with,” Nogel said. “Those are the same people at the same time that want us to put in a new scoreboard or hire a new coach or have better facilities, so you can’t have it both ways when you’re 100 percent self-funded.”

The reaction has been mixed, with about two-thirds of last year’s club section ticket-holders renewing their season tickets; those seats used to go for the price of a regular season ticket and a donation to the Cyclone Club. Iowa State added a mini-season package for $99, which includes tickets for three games and a $20 Applebee’s gift certificate, after talking with several patrons who said they could not afford full-season ticket packages. In less than two weeks, 2,000 people bought the package. The university also has sold out its end zone season tickets at $125 apiece for the third straight year.

“You have to have those premium seats to make improvements and do changes and fund your budget,” Nogel said, “but we’re also trying to create an atmosphere and have a full stadium for the team, so you have to have all different price points.”

Iowa State’s football budget has historically ranked in the lower third of the Big 12 Conference, he added, and these changes will help the school better compete.

Craig Hansen, a senior vice president at Holmes Murphy & Associates, said these changes encouraged his company to lease a suite this year, which it will use to entertain clients.

“It’s the whole direction of the athletic department, is one of the reasons,” Hansen said. “I like what (Director of Athletics) Jamie Pollard, is doing – the renovation of the stadium, the direction of the football program, the basketball program.”

One of many

Iowa State’s changes mirror a national trend to improve stadiums and fund the projects with premium seating.

The University of Iowa’s two-year renovation project, which was completed in 2006, was the first major renovation to Kinnick Stadium since it was built more than 75 years ago. The project added new scoreboards and locker rooms, more concession stands and restrooms, a grand entrance and a press box that also holds indoor and outdoor club seating and private suites.

All the premium seating has been full since the project was completed, Jennings said, with 46 club suites that go for $45,000 to $60,000 annually on a three-, five- or seven-year commitment; 130 indoor club seats that sell for $5,000 a year; and 1,150 outdoor club seats that go for $2,200 to $2,800 a year. Outdoor club seats have a waiting list of about 150 people, and there is a short waiting list for suites, Jennings said.

When U of I first proposed the stadium project to the Board of Regents, the board rejected it out of concern that the university couldn’t sell that many premium seats. However, the school sold 40 suites in just six weeks, and the Regents approved the plans. “It was surprising,” Jennings said.

During the project, Jennings said, the entire stadium seating was re-indexed, forcing some fans to change seats for the first time in the stadium’s history. At first people weren’t receptive, Jennings said, but after they saw the stadium plans, most paid the extra price for tickets.

“The best thing about it,” Jennings said, was that “it was very fair. It rewarded those that were loyal to the Hawks through all the years, but also rewarded those that came in later in life and stepped up with large contributions.”

With ISU just wrapping up renovations and looking to do more, its success may be tied with how well the team performs this year.

“Once we’re successful on the field, no doubt with (Head Coach Gene) Chizik,” Nogel said, “we have a plan in place so that we can capitalize on his success on the field, instead of sitting there, saying ‘What do we do next?'”