Sulsberger press box renovation nearly complete
ZANESVILLE – John D. Sulsberger didn’t live long enough to see the storied stadium on Blue Avenue that carries his namesake.
It’s likely that he’d be pretty impressed.
There have been plenty of changes at Sulsberger Memorial Stadium the past eight years, most notably a new playing surface, video board and weight facility. New bleachers and a new press box were installed on the visitor’s side, while the all-weather track has been resurfaced.
Next up? A new home press box, which will be completed before the 2015 season opener against rival Newark on Aug. 28.
The facility is arguably the best in eastern Ohio featuring ample parking, seating and concessions for fans, and game-day facilities for coaches and players.
Head football coach Chad Grandstaff said his program is blessed to have facilities he said he thinks are among the best state wide.
“It’s probably the nicest in this part of the state, for sure, and probably in the top 10 around the state,” Grandstaff said. “Massillon (Paul Brown Tiger Stadium) is nice and Canton (Fawcett Stadium) has the (NFL) Hall of Fame, but beyond that, ours is right up there.”
The press box renovation, conducted by Rick Wilson Construction, is part of an improvement project that will soon include new tennis courts and a refinishing of the victory bell. The blacktop for the tennis courts has already been laid.
The project was spearheaded by a committee of local residents that helped raise money for the project.
The stadium has long hosted state football playoff games, and the Ohio High School Athletic Association has leaned on it even more since the stadium improvements.
“Our board of education understands the importance of academics and athletics and how they go hand in hand,” Grandstaff said. “And in a community like Zanesville, you need both to be successful.”
Grandstaff hopes the continued facility improvements — the baseball and softball fields have also been renovated in recent years, along with the new high school — will urge more student athletes to participate in athletics.
Grandstaff said participation rates are down across the board, in boys and girls sports, and of the more than 400 boys in the high school, only 180 participate in a sport.
“Hopefully, we can motivate more kids in all sports, not just football,” Grandstaff said. “Zanesville itself, and Muskingum County, needs to start taking hard look at themselves. The numbers are low.”
Grandstaff said the problem lies in the homes and the parents’ willingness to not push their children to participate.
He also said the community, by and large, isn’t motivated.
“It’s not a school problem,” Grandstaff said. “It’s a city culture problem. That’s what I talk about daily.”
sblackburn@zanesvilletimesrecorder.com
740-450-6723
Twitter: @SamBlackburnTR