Work progressing on new WVU Marching Band field
In a release Tuesday, officials with the College of Creative Arts and Media said that underground work has begun on the new facility, which is set to be completed in time for use in fall 2025. The university also released renderings of the field at its new location on the Health Sciences campus, which you can see below.
The new field is a desperately needed upgrade from the current one the band uses, which is made of asphalt, has lighting on only one side and is located relatively far from other campus buildings. The new location will be near Mountaineer Station and the Health Sciences PRT station, allowing students to have more convenient access. The field will also be made of artificial turf and have stadium lighting.
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The construction of the field is only Phase One of the project. Phase Two is scheduled to begin after the field is complete and will include the construction of a storage building and a covered pavilion.
The construction of this field comes after multiple years of uncertainty surrounding the field's location and construction. When the project originally broke ground in 2021, it was meant to be located at the site of the old WVU Baseball field near the Coliseum. That project was later scrapped due to drainage and space concerns at the site.
Following the cancellation of the site near the Coliseum, WVU officials opted to move the new practice facility project to Mylan Park. This move drew controversy from donors and band alumni, who voiced concerns about Mylan Park's location off campus, given Morgantown's having some of the worst rush hour traffic in the area.
The saga came to an end in March 2024, when WVU announced that the project would be moving to the Med Fields on the Health Sciences Campus. Ground was broken on the project around a year later.
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