John Fallon Field Gets a Facelift

John Fallon Field completed in 2005

John Fallon Field, home of the Great Danes lacrosse team, has been undergoing phase two of its three phase construction plan to build a grandstand which will give spectators and athletes a renewed excitement.

A new grandstand has been under construction at John Fallon Field which will seat 2,000 spectators and feature a press box, ticket booths, restrooms and concession stand. As of now the $2 million project, which was started in December of 2007, will be ready by January 2009. “Just in time for our lacrosse teams home opener in February,” Rick Coe, Deputy Athletic Director said.

The project, $7 million in total, will create a better atmosphere for spectators and athletes, Coe said. “We didn’t have any permanent seating and we’ve had a few national games there and ESPN has been there and we thought given the national scope of our team, we wanted a permanent grandstand.”

Phase one of the project was to build the turf fields themselves, as well as the lights. The grandstand, press box and utilities foundations are all part of the second phase. The concession stand and restrooms, which will go underneath the grandstand, and seating for the field hockey field are all part of the third phase, which is still awaiting a budget approval.

Coe is excited that this project continues to keep moving forward, although not without its complications. “We are a little behind schedule as of right now, but construction usually is,” Coe said. He says that the utilities take the longest to install.

Set backs aside, the new grandstand should be a welcoming sight for spectators who had to watch from the grass or from outside the field in previous years. Fans will get to enjoy a new perspective come February, when the Great Danes host their home openers. “I think the team is certainly excited by seeing (the grandstand) out there,” Coe said. “It’s not just a venue for us, it’s for the whole capital region.”