Upgrades to Plainsman Park took a crucial step late last week, as the Auburn University Board of Trustees gave final project approval to approximately $30 million in stadium improvements Friday.
The project, which is set to add enhanced club seating and additional general seating along right field and atop the left field wall, has been in motion since September 2021, with the board approving project initiation on Sept. 10, 2021. An architect — Cooke Douglass Farr Lemons, of Jackson, Miss. — was chosen during a Nov. 12, 2021, meeting, but a special meeting was called on July 26 to expand “the scope of the project to include additional improvements to the baseball stadium.”
These renovations are set to include a three-story expansion along Plainsman Park’s first base line that will add enhanced premium seating, club spaces, concessions, and improved accessibility for the south entrance to Plainsman Park and right field terrace.
It will also include enhancements to the right field terrace, with seating over the Player Performance Development Center and new concessions.
Perhaps the most notable addition is seating atop the park’s left field wall, titled the “Green Monster Terrance” in the resolution’s executive summary. It’s described as “a new, 4,200 square foot unique viewing area over the Green Monster, including improved concessions and restrooms to support left field patrons.”
The resolution also said the project is expected to be financed by a combination of gifts, athletic department funds and university bonds.
The following steps for the project include: establishing a project budget; directing consultants to complete required project plans; and soliciting bids and awarding a contract for construction.
Auburn athletics director John Cohen, who was on hand to present the resolution according to the meeting’s agenda, is no stranger to college baseball stadium renovations.
While Cohen was in the same role at Mississippi State, he oversaw a nearly complete rebuild of Dudy Noble Field. That was a $68 million project that spanned three phases and four years.