Regents OK $250 million renovation plan for Husky Stadium

The University of Washington Board of Regents cleared the way for a $250 million renovation of Husky Stadium, voting Thursday to approve a plan that would pay for the work with private donations and increases in ticket prices.

It's the last step needed to launch the project. "Everybody wants a new stadium — we're tired of rebar sticking out," said regents Chairman Herb Simon, referring to the poor condition of the stadium.

Although the money is being privately raised, the project will draw on a $210 million loan from the school's internal lending program, which also is used to finance other building projects on campus.

And though the proposal passed unanimously, the regents questioned whether the project could diminish the university's ability to borrow money. The short answer: The athletic department is reasonably sure it will not.

Athletic department officials described the stadium renovation as a conservative plan that would still work even if the university couldn't raise any more than the $14.5 million in private donations that has already been pledged.

Students, meanwhile, say they're disappointed that the planned renovation moves them out of their premium seats at the 50-yard line and into the west end zone.

Stadium construction is scheduled to begin Nov. 7, 2011, with the Huskies playing the 2011 Apple Cup and all 2012 games in Qwest Field downtown before returning to Husky Stadium in 2013. Earlier this year, the development contract was awarded to Wright Runstad of Seattle.

The stadium will have 25 suites, 25 loge boxes and more than 2,500 club seats, which Athletic Director Scott Woodward called "key to the project."

No prices have been announced yet, but the UW says it will charge significantly more for the premium seats, which will amount to about 5 percent of the total seating of about 72,000. The total number of seats will be similar to the overall capacity of the current stadium.

The university is hoping to raise $50 million in private money over the next five years, but much of the money to repay the loan over the next 30 years would come from higher ticket prices, especially from the sale of premium seats.

The athletic department will also try to raise money by selling "naming rights" for various parts of the stadium — $50 million to name the field, for example, or $500,000 to $1 million for each of the four plaza areas.

There are no plans to sell the name of the stadium itself — it will always be Husky Stadium, Woodward said.

Athletics at the UW is a self-sustaining program that gets 85 percent of its revenue from the football program and 15 percent from basketball. The money is redistributed to 19 other sports. Because the football program raises so much money for other sports, Woodward said, it's important to keep the fans happy.

UW students are dismayed that the new plans call for the student section to be located in the west end zone, said student body president Madeleine McKenna.

Currently, about 6,000 student seats are located on or near the 50-yard line, and students pay about $125 for season tickets.

But in the new Husky Stadium, the price would jump to $900 for student season tickets on the 50-yard line, or $375 for season tickets located above the tunnel the team runs through on the way to the field. McKenna said students are unhappy that they weren't brought into discussions earlier.

"Basically, we're moving to the west end — that seems like the only option," McKenna said.

Regent Stan Barer said the UW needs to make sure to accommodate student needs. "We have quite an agenda we're pumping in Olympia this year, and I don't want them to be upset," he said.

The UW has already absorbed a roughly 30 percent budget cut over the last three years in money used for student education.

There are likely to be more budget cuts this year — and a tuition increase is probably inevitable.

Katherine Long: 206-464-2219 or klong@seattletimes.com