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Dayton Daily News (Ohio)
The football team at Tippecanoe High School could have an upgraded 3,500-seat stadium at City Park in time for the 2018 season.
Tippecanoe High School and the Tipp Pride Association announced plans Friday to privately fund the renovation of City Park as a state-of the-art athletic complex. That follows a decision earlier this week by the Tipp City Schools Board of Education to stay in the centrally located complex rather than build a new stadium on campus.
Tipp Athletic Director J.D. Foust said the goal would be to fund the entire estimated $6 million cost through private funding. An additional $1 million or more was estimated to build a new athletic complex at the high school.
"Our goal is to make an honest attempt at privately funding the stadium at 100 percent," Foust said. "This parent group has taken the lead on that and they're very positive and motivated and it should be good."
City Park is a historical and centrally located landmark in Tipp City, a growing Miami County community that's located off Interstate 75 between Vandalia and Troy. Tipp, along with Stebbins, left the Central Buckeye Conference for the Greater Western Ohio Conference last fall. That move sparked a sense of urgency for Tipp to upgrade its football and soccer facility.
City Park stadium was built in 1941 with a seating capacity of 1,800. The new stadium is expected to have a seating capacity of 3,500, new home and visitor bleachers, new home and visitor press boxes and new locker-rooms and concessions.
Construction is expected to begin after this coming football season and fully completed for the 2018 season. If that's not financially possible, stadium upgrades will be made in phases. The first upgrade will the installation of the popular artificial FieldTurf.
"From Day 1 in talking to community members and alumni who are interested in funding and making this happen, they've all mentioned City Park," Foust said. "Economically it makes sense to renovate where we already have a base and parking. We had more supporters for City Park. There's a lot of tradition there and through the whole city as well. It made sense to keep it at City Park."
For more information about the Tipp Pride Association and how to contribute see the website tipppride.com.
Contact this reporter at 937-225-2381 or email Marc.
Twitter: @MarcPendleton
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