Concrete and Glass

March 3, 2006

Could there be more of a contrast than that offered by concrete and glass? The former intended to literally stand the test of time; the latter, generally delicate. Concrete: The linebacker. Glass, the fleet-footed tailback.

Well, concrete and glass were pretty much the show-stealers Friday when hawkeyesports.com toured historic Kinnick Stadium on the University of Iowa campus to capture this week’s installment of photographs for kinnickrenovation.com, the official world wide web site of the multi-million dollar renovation of the UI’s prized football facility.

Concrete. Lots of it has been poured in the walkway of the west concourse. Last week, the walkway was approximately 40 percent done – south endzone going north to about the 40-yard line. Today, the paved surface extended north to just about the 25 and a good chunk of it was fresh and still being finished by a handful of guys enjoying a 45-degree sunny day in the Heartland.

“You think anyone would mind if I kind of left my mark on Kinnick?” we asked.

“Well, that’s a pretty fair question,” one of the staff working on the project responded with a smile. “I guess it depends on just how big your checkbook is.”

As of March 3, there are more than 1,000 photographs of the construction progress at historic Kinnick Stadium in the photo gallery of kinnickrenovation.com.

“Not big enough,” we responded with a chuckle.

In addition to the pouring of a significant amount of concrete, the new concessions and restrooms that line the interior (playing field) and exterior (parking lot) walls of the west concourse continue to also move along at a swift pace. All but the furthest north locations are pretty much defined. Those at the south end of the concourse are being equipped with ventilation systems and electricity.

Similar progress is being made on the east concourse. Much of what is occurring is behind the walls of the concourse where spaces are still be created and the steel support for the floors of the restrooms on the interior wall is being erected.

In the south end of the new press box, glass is being installed between each of the private suites on levels one and three. The same spaces on the first level also are being outfitted with cabinetry. Progress like the installation of light fixtures is also happening throughout the building.

And, finally, the work on the space between the north and south “towers” of the press box is being dominated by the installation of the floor for level two. Soon, concrete will be poured to provide the finished surface and the steel workers will return to being erecting level three.

Fans of the Hawkeyes can check out the progress by clicking on the “Construction Progress” link on the drop-down menu behind “Photo Galleries” at kinnickrenovation.com. It’s probably worth nothing that today’s additions to the gallery included the 1,000th photograph of the renovation project.