A few construction updates

This week BC released an update on all their construction projects -- sports and non-sports. The important dates for Football remain July 27 and August 3. On the 27, the school will file its Certificate of Occupancy. On August 3, official Football practices begin inside.

New dorm = new athletic facilities

BC finally got approval for a new dorm on Comm Ave. As most know, it has taken nearly a decade to get this far. While this is big news for students -- and means fewer will live off campus -- it also has huge repercussions for BC Athletics.

Once the dorm is built, BC will then be able to renovate other buildings and create some new athletic fields. The Athletic fields were specifically mentioned in the approval and in the article. However, BC didn't announce the order or priority of the new athletic buildings, but you have to assume the Plex is high on the list. My hope is that any Plex renovation will include some sort of indoor space for Football. I also hope this leads to a true baseball/softball complex.

Bates was scheduled to reveal the Master Plan this summer. He didn't. I assumed it was related to the dorm approval. Now that BC can go forward on that front, I expect some clear plan from Bates to follow.

Travelogue

I'll try not to bore you with a "how I spent my summer vacation" post,  but I was on campus Friday for the first time in four years. These are a few quick thoughts.

-- Stokes Hall is beautiful. However, I think the loss of green space is noticeable. The whole area now feels a little crowded. I hope the renovations outside of Fulton and Lyons provides the connection to the rest of campus green area. (My wife thought it looked great.)
-- My memories of BC's campus date back 20+ years. My wife's go back even further. Neither of us could remember a time when BC wasn't undergoing a major construction project. Ever to Excel and all that, but it would be nice to have a construction free campus for a year or two.

-- Campers at Steve Donahue's junior camp get their money's worth. We were walking through Conte during a session when we saw the coach sprinting up the stairs with an armful of practice jerseys. He was in a rush from one group to the next. How many other ACC coaches would make more than just a cameo appearance at their own camp?

-- I'm glad they don't lock Alumni. I don't think BC should advertise that it is easy to walk into the Stadium during the summer, but I am glad things were open when we visited. My kids ran around the field and had a great time. I've been chased off of an SEC stadium during a similar summer walk around a few years ago. At BC, no one hassled us.

I know that BC is a classic campus, but you forget how great it looks until you go back. It keeps changing and despite my minor gripes, it keeps getting more beautiful. I was proud and excited to share it with my next generation of BC fans.