Indians' new home on track for completion

Ledger photo by SCOTT POWELL Construction workers prepare the foundation Tuesday afternoon for the Gaffney High halftime house and the tunnel that players will use for their traditional game day entrance.

Pictures don't lie when it comes to tracking the progress being made on the new $8 million Gaffney High football stadium.

About 50 construction workers were hard at work Tuesday afternoon on the press box and installing seating on the home side of the stadium.

Steel braces were hoisted 40 feet into the air as construction workers focus on completing the twin press box towers. A few feet away, another group worked on a concession room.

Melloul Blamey Construction job superintendent George Pettit kept a watchful eye on the various activities while fielding phone calls to coordinate the steady stream of construction supplies coming onto the site.

"This is a very elaborate stadium," Pettit said. "It is a well-thought-out plan. This will be one of the nicest stadiums in South Carolina when it is finished."

The Gaffney High stadium is scheduled for completion by July 1.

Plans include a 4-story press box, a team meeting room, halftime houses, a tunnel, concession stands and multiple restrooms.

A bus parking area and end zone bleacher seats for 250 band members are included.

In the next two weeks, construction crews plan to start putting up the roofs for the team meeting room, visitor's halftime house, concession and restroom areas.

"We will be doing all the roof work at the same time that the home bleachers are being installed," Pettit said. "We expect all the bleachers will be done in another month."

Work has just started on the foundation for the halftime house and tunnel where Gaffney High football players will make their traditional entrance. The tunnel entrance is located adjacent to the home bleachers.

"The tunnel will not be underground for safety reasons, but it will definitely look like a tunnel," Pettit said.

Rainy weather this winter has pushed the stadium project back nine days past the original contract deadline on June 15. Construction workers have had to remove bad soil near the halftime house on the home side.

"The stadium construction is going well," Pettit said. "We've had some problems with rain in the past couple of weeks, but we are right on schedule."

The project does not include the playing surface.

The district will spend an additional $250,000 for stadium lights, which will be purchased through a $2.2 million furniture and equipment budget.

The Gaffney High Football Booster Club is working on a $600,000 project to install two digital electronic boards at each end of the stadium. One scoreboard will have an "instant replay" screen.

It's all part of the plan to give Gaffney High the best football stadium money can buy.

"We don't get to build a lot of stadiums," Pettit said. "There just aren't a lot of school districts building stadiums right now. I think when people see how nice the Gaffney High stadium is that you will see more stadiums being built."