If we had all the money in the world.. Move the track, lower the field, enlarge the stadium by 3-4K seats and put a football building in the far endzone.
Facilities Upgrade Wishes
- Thread starter spiderstudent17
- Start date
It is my understanding that our Special Use Permit & negotiations with the neighbors has put certain restrictions on changes to Robins Stadium and its surrounds. Some of these ideas are sound, but may not be doable because of these constraints. Jasmonn C. could probably best answer any specific questions on limits for development in this part of the campus.
First you would need a complete new City Council and possibly a new Mayor (the Mayor elect is a JMU grad, maybe he wants us to enlarge so that more purple *&^ can get tickets) 
BTW it would probably cost more than the original stadium.
BTW it would probably cost more than the original stadium.
OK ALREADY. KEEP THE SPIRES AND GARGOYLES
I have been in Sarah Brunet Hall several times, at least twice before enrolling at UR. I was not serious about tearing the building down, but it being one of the original buildings does not make it unique except in that regard. The Collegiate Gothic style was discovered before Ralph Cram was a glimmer in his parents' eyes. I'm sure you've both read and seen the images in John Rueben Alley's University of Richmond, Arcadia Publishing, 2010, and History of the University of Richmond,(1830-1971), The University Press of Virginia, 1977. If so, you will notice more pictures of young men in beanie caps and pictures of barracks built for the V12 program for WWII than images of "Brunet Hall." If you believe that it should not be altered or if you are basing your logic on not altering the building upon it being unique because of its Collegiate Gothic style, then you need to visit the campuses of Harvard, Kenyon, NYU, Penn, Yale and Cornell, all of which have buildings in that style erected in the 19th century before any on ours built in the 20th century. If you base your opinion upon Ralph Cram's architectural philosophy, please note that he stated that his design of "The Refectory" was of the nature to cause one to be "restorative for the students both physically and mentally."
For those of you wanting to preserve anything that you consider unique as to our campus, I suggest you take a look at the fact that we made little or no effort to acquire and preserve the buildings of our original campus bordered by Franklin and Lombardy Streets to the south and west, and Broad and Ryland Streets to the north and east. With the exception of the Columbia Building (the Philip Haxall House, 1142 W. Grace Street), the campus was razed in 1914 when we moved to our current campus. To my knowledge, even after we had the funds, we never took any steps to acquire the Columbia building or to preserve its original architectural nature. It was sold at public auction in 2013 and even then, to the best of my knowledge, we showed no interest in its historical value as to UR. It is now a registered historic landmark, but all efforts to obtain that designation and preserve its original architecture were brought about by others than UR. If you notice the columns at Grace and Lombardy, you will notice that they were placed there as an entrance to UR and though there is a plaque on them setting forth their date of origin and purpose, I doubt that any of that was a result of UR's efforts or funds. For those of you not familiar with the City of Richmond, the original campus is within blocks of the current VCU campus
If you read Ralph Cram's Wiki page, you will notice mention of numerous prestigious universities to which he was associated or for which he designed buildings. You will not, however, see any mention of the University of Richmond or Richmond College.
original plans of the Refectory. So you can see that besides the two original dining spaces, most of the rest of the facility was added in the 80's when they converted it to admissions. I think that the back half could be torn down and replaced with something much more useful for the stadium and athletic department. I am not sure what is in the original apartment upstairs now..
I think the even the kitchen area may have been torn down and replaced as part of the expansions and renovations over the years, leaving just the two refectories and the entry hall from the original.
I wouldn't be opposed to replacing the more recent additions with something new that fits architecturally, but you've got to keep the original front entry facade and the dramatic refectories somehow. I'd think one of them might be able to be repurposed as a team meeting room, although I'd prefer they be left open to the broader university population somehow.
I wouldn't be opposed to replacing the more recent additions with something new that fits architecturally, but you've got to keep the original front entry facade and the dramatic refectories somehow. I'd think one of them might be able to be repurposed as a team meeting room, although I'd prefer they be left open to the broader university population somehow.
That would be fantastic news!! I ready to step up , let's see how things progress into the spring and perhaps we can identify areas to help the team out.
The athletic department needs to have fundraiser for very specific things such as raising money for a locker room or weight room. Personally, I'd rather donate money to the university for a specific cause than a general donation because I would feel more in control of where the money is going.
Many donors like that - few are all that excited about the general fund, though recipients love it.
I'm saying even more specific than a department in athletics i.e. Football or basketball. I'm saying things like renovating the locker room, adding a new press box for Pitt field, etc. I feel that if I were to donate money to the athletic department in general, I'd have no idea what it goes to. In fact, it might go towards things I don't agree with. I feel like the school could be more effective in fundraising when there is a concrete, specific goal in mind. To who ever made the contribution for the locker room, thank you!
I see all of this interesting ideas for facility upgrades but I really stoped to think that the upgrades have to be part of an overall plan. I hate to say it but a vision for richmond football.
To me the plan consists of a few components that all tie to a common end result/goal
The components as I see it (this is of the cuff so I'm sure im leaving good ideas out)
1. Facility upgrades
- locker room
- weight room
Where budget falls short tell us and create specific drives to raise funds
2. Marketing plan to expand fan base
- 3,000- 5,000 more fans (500 more students)
- community outreach / target groups with followings/ we have perfect coach to help now
Events and promotions targeted to those groups
Youth and hs football fans
Think out of the box for additional fans. Are there any other colleges in area without a football team Maybe adopt the spiders etc
Richmond has good food and music take advantage of it and make that part of pregame
Create Plan , develop the goals and objectives and execute! We Have a very good base this is not a rebuild but taking advantage of a winning program
Get New cool Gear For teamut names back on jersey(let kids identify with there favorite players)
- players feel good and that's what get these kids going these days (yes I know it's the education and they know it too but) but there can be another benefit ting into the plan. - it will attract interest from youth in richmond area, they will want to wear and identify.
Get tons of gloves! Give them to youmg kids after the game , this is a big deal to them, part of marketing budget
Do things that tie into overall goals!
Now I know the Athletic dept and the schools marketing can do better than me on this , just a few ideas
Finally transparency, say what you will and can do and where you need help
That's all folks
Sent from my iPad
To me the plan consists of a few components that all tie to a common end result/goal
The components as I see it (this is of the cuff so I'm sure im leaving good ideas out)
1. Facility upgrades
- locker room
- weight room
Where budget falls short tell us and create specific drives to raise funds
2. Marketing plan to expand fan base
- 3,000- 5,000 more fans (500 more students)
- community outreach / target groups with followings/ we have perfect coach to help now
Events and promotions targeted to those groups
Youth and hs football fans
Think out of the box for additional fans. Are there any other colleges in area without a football team Maybe adopt the spiders etc
Richmond has good food and music take advantage of it and make that part of pregame
Create Plan , develop the goals and objectives and execute! We Have a very good base this is not a rebuild but taking advantage of a winning program
Get New cool Gear For team
ut names back on jersey(let kids identify with there favorite players)- players feel good and that's what get these kids going these days (yes I know it's the education and they know it too but) but there can be another benefit ting into the plan. - it will attract interest from youth in richmond area, they will want to wear and identify.
Get tons of gloves! Give them to youmg kids after the game , this is a big deal to them, part of marketing budget
Do things that tie into overall goals!
Now I know the Athletic dept and the schools marketing can do better than me on this , just a few ideas
Finally transparency, say what you will and can do and where you need help
That's all folks
Sent from my iPad
spiderstudent17 - You should talk with Jasmonn Coleman - He will be glad to help you customize your desired giving toward a specific need within the Football program - When they redid the Football offices a few years back, you were able to make a gift toward the renovation of individual offices and common/meeting spaces - this can even be done on a multi-year pledge basis if you want to make a larger pledge and spread it out over a few years - Jasmonn is the person to talk to - His # is (804) 287-1283 and his email is Jasmonn.Coleman @richmond.edu.
Thanks for info... I'm waiting to see what the department plans are first and see where they are focusing their efforts
Money is an issue it's always an issue for any school, but without any information nobody knows how big an issue it is for UR athletics. With some limited exterior work and a good of amount of interior work couldn't Millhiser be converted to a excellent locker and training facility, It's proximity to the field is fine. (Other than beer tastings what is it used for now?)
'Mess Hall'? It's The Refectory please.
'Mess Hall'? It's The Refectory please.
Absolutely right, WebSpinner!
Jasmonn is very accessible and willing to take correspondence (emails or calls) and responds quickly. I would encourage anyone wanting to know more about the Elevate Campaign (realizing the past few weeks may have impacted it to some degree) to contact Jasmonn. He is a former Spider Football player and Richmond native.
Jasmonn is very accessible and willing to take correspondence (emails or calls) and responds quickly. I would encourage anyone wanting to know more about the Elevate Campaign (realizing the past few weeks may have impacted it to some degree) to contact Jasmonn. He is a former Spider Football player and Richmond native.
Thank you Pawleys,
I have reached out to Jasmonn before about the elevate campaign. Good guy who gave me a prompt response. While specific donations can be made, I think the athletic department donor relations person should be more transparent about all the different ideas floating around to build our athletic department and to communicate those ideas to all the spider club members/alumni. So for example, Lets say one day I get an email asking for a donation to the athletic department. In that email, I would like it to tell me what the athletic department is planning to do with its donation money such as renovations to A, B, and C. While I value renovations A and B, I would prefer my money goes to plan C. So I should be able to donate X amount of money to specifically plan C. Right now, i don't think the department does a good job of communicating this. Maybe it's because I'm not an alumnus yet, but things like the elevate campaign, I only found out about through this forum.
SS17 - I am going to generalize based on what I have seen in the past - the Elevate Campaign is a large multi-sport campaign - often times larger campaigns start with a "quiet" phase where past large donors are approached first, then the development staff works down the pyramid of givers and, ultimately, a more public general campaign finalizes the process - hopefully successfully meeting the campaign goal. The concepts for the Elevate Campaign have been out there awhile and I am sure the past few weeks may have impacted its plans because some of the Football wishes were identified in the Campaign as has been stated here. If you don't see what you want in the form of communications in the near future, again I would highly recommend that you reach out to Jasmonn. I'm sure he can customize some means of seeing that your desired gift gets to where you want it.
The city limited the size of the stadium, to roughly match Robins Center, stupid I know we're talking 6 Saturdays a year. The problem isn't selling tickets (we sell out a lot) the problem is people coming to the games. My only offer for a solution is make game attendance part of the seat license obligation?I see all of this interesting ideas for facility upgrades but I really stoped to think that the upgrades have to be part of an overall plan. I hate to say it but a vision for richmond football.
To me the plan consists of a few components that all tie to a common end result/goal
The components as I see it (this is of the cuff so I'm sure im leaving good ideas out)
1. Facility upgrades
- locker room
- weight room
Where budget falls short tell us and create specific drives to raise funds
2. Marketing plan to expand fan base
- 3,000- 5,000 more fans (500 more students)
- community outreach / target groups with followings/ we have perfect coach to help now
Events and promotions targeted to those groups
Youth and hs football fans
Think out of the box for additional fans. Are there any other colleges in area without a football team Maybe adopt the spiders etc
Richmond has good food and music take advantage of it and make that part of pregame
Create Plan , develop the goals and objectives and execute! We Have a very good base this is not a rebuild but taking advantage of a winning program
Get New cool Gear For team
- players feel good and that's what get these kids going these days (yes I know it's the education and they know it too but) but there can be another benefit ting into the plan. - it will attract interest from youth in richmond area, they will want to wear and identify.
Get tons of gloves! Give them to youmg kids after the game , this is a big deal to them, part of marketing budget
Do things that tie into overall goals!
Now I know the Athletic dept and the schools marketing can do better than me on this , just a few ideas
Finally transparency, say what you will and can do and where you need help
That's all folks
Sent from my iPad
Oh I agree, Jasmonn is a great guy..........and he loves checks. Don't let his size intimidate you, you give him a check and he settles right down. These ex defensive linemen just have something in their system.
That same story was posted on this board though I am not sure about the amount. Aside from Title IX and for reasons I have yet to hear, the athletic department refuses to consider lighting at the baseball field despite the desire of many, including the coach.
Eight, after the attacks which went on for the past week or so on the board, the club will probably be on franklin in the fan.
Is the holdup Crenshaw Field where Field Hockey plays? Is it even feasible to put lights there?
But this is the exact point that hurts the credibility of our AD and marketing dept.
Why if they were raising money for improvements over past two years, did the booster and alumni base, not know?
Considering the success of last 3 years, funds would have been raised. This is why I am having a hard time believing Gill. Yes I think Rocco's departure had some kinks in it, but may be by putting the athletic dept on the hotspot, this was a chance to make some positive changes for the future of Spider football.
I remember him withdrawing his pledge to buy the lights when Cooper told him "just give us the money and we'll decide how to spend it." Might explain why he hasn't been back.
The donation was made prior to Rocco's departure and he knew all about it. My understanding is that construction is slated to begin around this time next year.
