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MSU project delayed

Opening of air-supported dome at Herb Parker Stadium pushed back

Garrick Hodge/MDN Last fall, construction work began at Herb Parker Stadium to put a bubble cover in place protecting the playing surface from the winter elements.

The Herb Parker Stadium renovation project has hit an unexpected snag.

In August, Minot State officials declared an air-supported multisport dome surrounding the field would be available for community members beginning in November 2016, yet the facility has not yet been erected.

The dome was expected to host local softball and baseball games, serve as an indoor golf range and allow users space to play ultimate frisbee or go jogging, while also serving as an indoor practice facility for MSU athletic teams.

While not without faults, the construction around the stadium was eventually completed in the fall, but the holdup has been due to a delay with the dome’s fabric.

“The source of the fabric was just a lot longer to get it all together,” MSU Director of Athletics Andrew Carter said. “What we know now is it’s one month from the time the company (Yeadon) gets it to where it’s ready for us. There’s a lot of decisions that are pending depending on whether or not there are any further delays.”

Carter said the earliest Yeadon could receive the fabric is by late January, meaning the dome could be available to the public no sooner than late February.

“There’s a lot of activity that was planned for February in there that we have to make adjustments on,” Carter said. “But I’ve never been a part of a project that didn’t have a delay, ever. That’s a lot of years and a lot of projects. You have to learn to roll with it and move on.”

If further delays are caused when the calendar turns to February, Carter will have a difficult decision to make. When completed, the dome is only expected to be up until late April or early May. So the first-year athletic director might have to determine if the day-to-day cost of upkeep is worth having the dome up for only two or three months, or if it would make more sense to wait to put the dome up until November.

“Right now we’re not thinking about that, that kind of stuff is just up in the air,” Carter said. “I try not to make decisions until I have to, and right now I don’t have to make that decision. We would like to believe there’s a chance that things could fall into place for us to get some time in it soon.

“If it gets to be Feburary and they tell us it’s going to be a few more weeks, then we start to have tougher discussions. If you don’t get an ample amount of time, you have to identify if that’s the smart thing to do.”

Carter said he understands any frustration from community members, but said no one from the university has done anything to slow things down and the source of delay has been from the company’s side and the source of the fabric.

“Quite honestly, not all of the communication (with Yeadon) has been that good,” Carter said. “But we’re up to speed now on where things stand. It takes a lot to frustrate me because I know the nature of what we do, there’s just constant change happening.

“You could also look at it this way, there’s several of these facilities throughout the upper midwest that have failed and have gone down during heavy snow and the poor weather we’ve had. I’d hate to be in that scenario where we just put it up and then we have to take it down because of weather.”

The total cost of the project is an estimated $1.9 million, with $1 million coming from Minot’s Community Facility Fund grant. The other $900,000 will be footed by donations from private individuals, foundations and local businesses.

Garrick Hodge covers Minot State athletics, the Minot Minotauros and high school sports. Follow him on Twitter @Garrick_Hodge.

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