The University of South Florida (USF) has released results of a feasibility study on a proposed on-campus stadium, an early step in the school’s ongoing process.
USF has been looking at its options for constructing an on-campus facility, and gave more information about that effort on Tuesday by presenting the results of an initial feasibility study on the proposal. The study considered several points for the stadium, including a projected seating capacity of roughly 40,000–with the capability of eventually expanding to 50,000–along with enough surrounding space to support fan experience amenities. Plans also included a mixed-use area that would include 200 hotel rooms and 10,000 square feet of convention space.
This report provides some details on what the university is considering for its stadium, but USF officials are stressing that they are still in the early stages of the process. The study evaluated four sites, and more detailed information relating to the stadium’s location, funding, and cost–the latter of which is currently projected at around $200 million in today’s dollars–need to be pinned down in the future, according to athletic director Mark Harlan and USF vice president for administrative services Calvin Williams. More from The Tampa Bay Times:
The basics of the 41-page report: The sites are located in two “zones,” all bordering or near Fowler Avenue. Projected capacity is 40,000-50,000. Expected costs hover around $200 million in today’s dollars.
Williams stressed no educational or general state funds would be used to finance the facility. Student fees may or may not be another matter.
A USA Today report indicated more than $17 million — about 36 percent — of USF’s total athletic revenue in 2016 (roughly $47.1 million) came from student fees.
“At the end of the day, any student fees has to work through their committees and their structure,” Harlan said. “So I think right now, we’re so early in process it’s hard quite candidly to take that off the table.”
The sites explored in the study included the current location of the Museum of Science and Industry, as well as fields south of the Sun Dome, the northeast corner of Fowler and Bruce B. Downs Boulevard, plus land close to the USF Botanical Gardens.
The university’s board of trustees is expected to discuss the study at a meeting on August 17, but will not make a decision about the stadium. USF currently plays at Raymond James Stadium, also the home of the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Renderings courtesy USF.