The Herald-Sun reports today that county commissioners agreed to give the Durham County Memorial Stadium a $7.7 million upgrade (registration required) during a Tuesday work session. (The day-old H-S report breaks the story among Triangle media, which have followed the stadium story in the past.) According to The Durham News, an N&O community weekly, the proposal–which covers a new press box, handicapped accessibility, astro-turf and urinals, among other amenities–will come to a vote during a public commissioners’ meeting Nov. 18. (In an unrelated news item, the Durham County Web site is apparently ridden with malicious software, according to our Firefox 3 browser.)
The News reports that Shaw University, which once flirted with matching Durham County’s funds for the stadium, will instead continue playing football there on a per diem basis. According to the News, the price tag for the stadium improvements– the first since its construction in 1959–has tripled, at least on the county’s end: from half of $4.5 million (had Shaw matched funds) to the whole nine yards of $7.7 million. The News writes that these funds will “trickle down from the $121.5 million the county has planned for a new health and human services complex.” I believe there’s a urinal joke to be made.
From the News:
Within two years, sports fans will be able to enjoy football or soccer games, and take their breaks in new bathrooms. The old men’s room urinal troughs will be replaced with new fixtures, and there will be family restrooms for adults and young children to share.
