Blankenship bleacher project could cost $550,000; funding not clear

It could cost a total of $550,000 to replace the visitor bleachers at Blankenship Field and complete related projects ranging from repairing the Wildcat Crossing stairs on the home side of the field to replacing the retaining wall and removing trees behind the visitor bleachers.

Demolition work on the deteriorated bleachers has already started. The Oak Ridge Board of Education approved that project in January.

It could cost about $375,000 to replace just the bleachers, said Allen Thacker, maintenance and operations supervisor for Oak Ridge Schools. And the seating capacity would be reduced from 3,400 seats to 2,000.

But it’s not clear yet who will pay for the replacements or supply the extra $175,000 for related projects, which also include replacing stairs and sidewalks at the visitor restrooms.

Thacker gave a brief presentation to the Oak Ridge Board of Education and City Council during a joint work session on Friday. City officials were noncommittal. Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson, who previously raised the prospect of possibly using portable bleachers, said the proposed project is “out of sequence” and not in the budget—although he said that has nothing to do with being a Wildcat. Mayor Tom Beehan said school board help will be needed, pointing out that city employees have not had a raise in a while. And Oak Ridge City Council member Trina Baughn asked if the school system could use part of its reserves for the bleacher project.

Thacker said financing will have to be worked out between the city and schools.

Thacker also expects to make a presentation during a school board meeting at 6 p.m. Monday. The board hasn’t approved a replacement plan yet, but in January, Oak Ridge Schools Superintendent Bruce Borchers said the goal is to have new bleachers by the start of the next football season this fall. The school system is looking at all options in case the bleachers aren’t available by then, Borchers said.

Inspections had determined that the bleachers are no longer safe for fans, would cost too much to repair, and should be demolished immediately.

Thacker said the scrap metal is being recycled and used to pay for engineering fees. The bleachers were built as temporary structures in the 1950s, although repairs have been made, including in a $80,000 project in 2006.

A schedule in Thacker’s presentation has the project going out for bid on Monday with a bid opening on March 7, and construction starting by April 1 or May 1. That would allow the stands to be ready by Aug. 29.

“From this point forward, the timetable will be critical to follow in order to be ready for the first home of the season,” Thacker’s presentation said.

Manuel D. Herz of Adams, Craft, Herz, and Walker, an architectural and engineering firm that evaluated the bleachers last year, has said that the smaller bleachers would allow a small parking lot at the field for handicapped parking, a feature that doesn’t currently exist. The new bleachers would be compliant with the American with Disabilities Act and be accessible from the parking lot to the track level.

There is a separate initiative that has involved citizens and has been under way since at least last fall that includes more comprehensive renovations at Jack Armstrong Stadium/Blankenship Field. Supporters have said those renovations could cost several million dollars, and they would be the first major changes at Blankenship Field since 1975.