It appeared South Carolina was on the cusp of major renovations to Williams-Brice Stadium — billed by the university as a “major modernization” of the Gamecocks’ home.
South Carolina had submitted a formal “Request for Information” (RFI) about the project and athletic director Ray Tanner dreamed of making it all happen.
More premium seating. Huge upgrades. Development of more than 800 hectares of land owned by the university, which would return revenues to USC.
It’s been more than 20 months since that announcement and little tangible progress has been made, aside from a Request for Proposal (RFP) in June.
That will probably change on Friday.
The South Carolina Board of Trustees will meet at noon with a notable action item titled “Phase 1 Approval of the Williams-Brice Stadium Development Project.”
Phase 1 involves renovations, according to a university source inside from Williams-Brice Stadium.
That’s only notable because some thought South Carolina could get construction going with the vacant land outside of Willy-B, possibly entering into a lease with contractors and turning the area around the stadium into something resembling The Battery Atlanta – the vibrant area outside the Atlanta Braves ballpark with hotels, restaurants, shops and more.
Instead, it’s likely the Gamecocks will attack the premium space first, possibly the drastic lack of suites at Williams-Brice Stadium.
As detailed a few months ago, South Carolina is potentially losing millions because the Gamecocks’ football stadium has 18 premium suites, all on the west side — and the university earns only 14 of them.
For reference, Clemson has 95, Texas A&M has 140, Georgia has 86, Florida has 80 and Kentucky has 67.
Each USC suite currently costs nearly $85,000 per year and requires a $31,500 donation to the Gamecock Club. That means South Carolina essentially makes $116,000 for every new suite it builds.
Extrapolate that to 45 new suites, which is a possibility, and South Carolina is suddenly generating well over $5 million more in annual revenue.
So why did this take so long?
There are a few different reasons, some political. A major hurdle was State Bill 314, which declared that no university athletics department in South Carolina could have outstanding bonds (debts) of more than $200 million. According to those with knowledge of the situation, South Carolina would not be able to undergo large-scale construction without crossing the threshold.
But in mid-July, Governor Henry McMaster signed an amendment into law that raised the debt limit to $500 million.
“The debt limit has been lifted,” Gamecock Club President Wayne Hiott told the State in June. “So there is a path (to renovations), but there are all kinds of different hurdles in the way. You want to make sure you do well with your fan base.”
In the months after the debt limit was raised, South Carolina conducted market research, inviting fans to take surveys about what matters to them. “Bathrooms and concessions are at the top of the list,” Hiott said. But also: Are you interested in a suite? Are you interested in a field-level suite? Would you pay $50,000? Would you pay $75,000?
“$300 million seems like a lot of money — and it is — but it doesn’t do everything we need it to do,” Hiott said. “So how do you use it in a way that you can invest and then use the return on that investment for whatever else you want to do?”
