Dakota State University this week began construction on the first phase of a sports complex master plan that was approved back in 2018.
The project involves building an outdoor track and soccer field, to be followed by an events center and football field. The end goal was to build a new home for every team in the DSU's athletics department.
“The fieldhouse was built in 1957 and at that time, we had 75 student athletes in the athletic program. We now have 471. So you can imagine how cramped our facilities are,” DSU Athletic Director Jeff Dittman told KELO.
After four years, the money has been raised for phase one — an outdoor track and soccer field to be completed in 2023 – which will cost $35 million.
“We were just finally ready to get something done. We had the right people in the right positions for things to happen and then once we raised enough money, that’s when the real emotion came out,” DSU football coach Josh Anderson said. “Oh my goodness, we’re there, we’re going to do this and this is happening.”
The new events center and football stadium is expected to be completed in 2024.
Along with the new facilities, DSU will add five news programs over the next few years, including men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s golf and drone racing.
