With the aid of a sports and entertainment consulting firm, the Ohio State University athletics department this week is surveying fans and season-ticket holders about potential renovations to Ohio Stadium.
The university’s athletic department has retained CSL, a sports and entertainment consulting firm, to distribute a survey as part of a feasibility study.
As reported by Joey Kaufman of The Columbus Dispatch, the survey is believed to be the most extensive assessment of potential upgrades to the historic stadium in at least a decade.
“We’ve got to keep up,” OSU athletic director Ross Bjork said. “Whether it’s driving revenue, whether it’s aging amenities, whether it’s fan experience stuff, it’s really just making sure the stadium is modernized every step of the way.”
The in-depth survey focuses on additional seating options, asking respondents about their interest in premium seats that range from club suites to standing-room-only spots and hospitality areas, Kaufman reported, adding questions also cover amenities as part of the seating possibilities such as all-inclusive food and beverage services.
Ohio State first added premium seats as part of the stadium’s major renovation in 2001, building 81 luxury suites within a new press box on the west side. It later constructed additional luxury suites and loge boxes in the northwest corner during another facelift in the late 2010s.
Even so, athletics administrators said the current percentage of premium seats at the Horseshoe is at the lower end among college football’s largest stadiums, estimating around just 4% of seats are upscale compared to other venues that reserve about a 10th of their seats for similar spaces. Kevin Griffin, associate director of athletics for business stratgety, said some schools offer as many as eight types of premium seating options in their stadiums, while Ohio Stadium has two.
“One of the things we’re trying to do a better job of, and I hope we do the best in the country, is we actually have information that’s validated,” Griffin said. “Then we can have a conversation that’s really truly around information, data and facts as opposed to just a gut instinct.”
Waiting lists for the premium options Ohio State currently offers prompted the exploration of doing more. “It’s significant enough that we want to find opportunities for these people,” said Mike Penner, an executive associate athletic director for internal operations, as reported by the Dispatch.
"Potential renovations are not guaranteed to cater solely to well-heeled donors, as administrators highlighted concepts that could broaden the range of premium seating offerings," Kaufman wrote Monday for the Dispatch.
