Iconic Ben Hill Griffin Stadium is in need of a facelift after all these years.
The University of Florida Athletic Association is in the market for someone to perform the extensive and high-priced makeover of every aspect of a venue constructed more than 90 years ago.
On Monday the school announced its search began for an architectural firm to design plans for the largest facility project in the UAA’s history and the climax of widespread athletic facility upgrades already totaling nearly $200 million.
Athletic director Scott Stricklin said his department has conducted studies for more than five years to determine the extent of a football stadium renovation projected to cost at least $400 million and sure to reduce capacity from 88,548.
“Whatever work we do there doesn’t need to be a Band-aid,” Stricklin said May 31 in Destin during the SEC’s spring meetings. “It needs to be a multi-generational solution to continue to give that stadium for future generations a chance to come and watch the Gators there. It has to be everything from how fans experience when they’re outside the stadium, when they walk through the gate, concourse, concession, restrooms, inside the seating bowl, new premium options, better premium options.
“But you also want to keep what’s special about it.”
Florida Field was built in 1930 as college football was growing in popularity.
Eight of 14 current SEC schools built their stadium even earlier, beginning with Mississippi State’s Davis Wade Stadium in 1914.
Few venues offered Florida Field’s level of intimacy. Unlike other stadiums, a track did not surround the gridiron which allowed seating much closer to the field.
UF has performed several upgrades, the first in 1949 and last in 2003, to increase capacity and improve amenities. Over time the stadium became one of the college football’s most raucous environments and best home-field advantages.
In 1992, coach Steve Spurrier coined the nickname, “The Swamp,” where his teams would post a remarkable 68-5 record from 1990-2001.
Yet, the facility began to show its age while many schools have invested significantly to improve their facilities and game day experience.
The UAA did not want to pursue a project without keeping the essence of the storied stadium.
“You want to retain what’s special about the Swamp but provide NFL-style fan amenities and also have a great place for students to be a part of it as well,” Stricklin said. “So you kind of want to combine all that into one mix. To do that you have to touch everything.”
The UAA will coordinate the search process with the school’s Campus Planning, Design and Construction Office. The architectural firm will develop a planning strategy to be done in phases.
“There are many questions that come with a project of this scope, but it would be premature to speculate on the answer to many of those, including but not limited to final costs, seating capacity and specific timeline,” Stricklin said.
The UAA has been aggressively upgrading facilities for some time, beginning with a $15 million indoor football practice facility in 2015 and culminating with the August 2022 opening of the $86 million James W. “Bill” Heavener Football Training Center.
Baseball’s $65 million Condron Ballpark opened in 2021 on the heels of more than $15 million in upgrades to softball’s Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
The school will soon embark in $4.1 million in improvements to James G. Pressly Stadium, Percy Beard Track.
Yet, no project will have the scope or impact of renovating the Swamp.
“We’re in the service business,” Stricklin said. “We create experiences whether it’s for our student athletes, our staff and ultimately for Gator Nation. We want to be able to create a better experience so that students want to keep coming out and when the graduate they want to bring their families and continue being what a Gator is all about.”
