Eugene Civic Stadium- Rebuild

It has been about a year now since I made the move from San Jose, CA to Corvallis , OR. When I first moved here I was sitting on the couch one day watching the news, then I saw a news story about the Civic stadium in Eugene and how a Group was able to secure enough funding to purchase the stadium and the ground it sits on with plans to renovate the Stadium and to add sports facilities for the youth of the city to use. Sadly only a few months after Eugene Civic Alliance began to put plans in motion three teen age boys committed arson and the entire historic Civic Stadium burnt down in a massive fireball. Some parts of the stadium where salvageable such as the old score board and wooden frames and beams, they will be instigated back into the new plans. Curious about the status of this effort I reached out to the folks at ECA to find out what's happening and what the next step is, along with of course  the possibility of a facility worthy enough to hosts rugby matches sometime down the road. Derek Johnson a spokes person for ECA was able to answer some questions about the status of Civic stadium and how he would sell Eugene to USA Rugby to and Pro Rugby to play a test match and place a club in the area.

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LLR- Since the fire that burned down Civic Stadium what has happened behind the scenes, are there still plans to rebuild and continue forward with the original plans for the land?

DJ- Since the fire the Eugene Civic Alliance has continued its efforts to build a sports and recreation facility on the 10.2 acre parcel.  The Board of Directors is committed to making the vision a reality.

LLR- Where do things currently stand, with funding and the next process of things that still needs to be done?

DJ- We are in a strong position financially, owning the property free and clear and having proceeds from the insurance claim in the bank.  We intend to kick off our major fundraising campaign this spring, and have been assembling the materials, organizational structure and leadership to be successful.  We expect to hire an architect within the next month.  That will help us tremendously with conceptual drawings, cost estimates and the like.

LLR- I understand that the main attraction for this facility is to get a soccer team, Lane United, to become the permanent residence but can the community and fans of other sports also look forward to seeing other events being played there also?

DJ- We expect the park to have three main components: a fieldhouse for Kidsports, big enough for four or more basketball courts., etc.; a synthetic turf field; and a stadium with facilities for players and fans alike.  The soccer teams, both men’s and women’s would be anchor tenants, but the stadium and field are not being built for them.  We expect lots of other teams to play there, including other soccer teams, rugby, ultimate Frisbee, lacrosse and others.  We also hope the venue will work for events.

LLR- Lane United FC has on their website to be playing at the new civic stadium in 2017, is that still possible for some portion of the overall facility to be open for sporting events to start being held?

DJ-   We would love to have some of the facility available for play in 2017.  The decision as to when to break ground, and in what sequence, has not been made.

LLR- Being this is a rugby blog I have to ask a few questions for the rugby folks out there especially in Oregon, The North West has yet to host a Rugby Test match, if you could speak with USA Rugby what would you say to convince them to play in Eugene rather than Portland or Seattle?

DJ- Eugene would be an ideal location for a major Rugby Test match.  The community has lots of experience putting on major events, from Duck football games to the track meets at Hayward Field.  A match in Eugene would be the biggest event on the sporting calendar when it is played, not competing with the Timbers, Seahawks, Blazers or any other professional team.  Eugene is well situated between Seattle and San Francisco to host such an event, and airline connections, while not like Seattle or Portland, are adequate for this purpose.  Best of all, the players and fans alike would be one hour from the mountains and one hour from the ocean.  It would be a tremendous experience for everyone.

LLR- With the dawn of professional rugby set to begin this April in America, why should ProRugby call Eugene home to a club in the NW over Portland and Seattle?

DJ- See #5 above.  I would add that Eugene is teeming with the age demographic that is interested in sports like rugby and soccer.  And the microbrew scene would be super accommodating.  Further I suspect the costs of running a team out of Eugene could be significantly cheaper than bigger metro areas – air travel being the one exception.

LLR- How can those who want to fallow the Civic Stadium progress keep in touch and fallow along?

DJ- Best way to follow along is through the website: eugenecivicalliance.org

LLR- For those who want to help but may not live in the Eugene, how can they contribute to make Civic Stadium become a reality?

DJ- We have a link on our website where supporters can contribute.  And talking up the excitement of having such a venue in the heart of Eugene is critical.

“Imagine fans arriving by bus, bicycle and by foot; U of O students walking up for an international experience.  All the permanent seats are long sold out, and the temporary bleachers are packed.  Folks are up on Willamette trying to watch for free.  The All Blacks line up at midfield, stare straight ahead and the crowd roars as they start their haka.  The Springboks strive to ignore them and continue warming up casually.  The tension is palpable – beer flowing, flags streaming and fans cheering.  Finally, the referee whistles the match to begin and Civic is reborn in a swirl of color, culture, drama and unparalleled athleticism.  Play ON.”- Derek Johnson

rendering of plans to what ECA envisions

picture is aerial view of what was Civic Stadium

I would like to add that even though Eugene is not a major market for television , Eugene and the surrounding towns and communities, Springfield, Albany, Corvallis, and even Roseburg (total 346,487 population not including the other smaller towns in between)  are areas that are experiencing massive growth and development along with a very active growing rugby scene that can contribute from having a Stadium such as Civic available to host a variety of entertainment and with the lack of proper facilities in the NW this corner of Oregon could be its answer and be the Glendale of the area. For ProRugby placing a team in Eugene would be much cheaper to pay players and allow the people involved to live more comfortably then some of the other players will be experiencing in other parts of the country on top of that you have the massive investment from Nike to University of Oregon which could allow the club and the league a chance to also tap into by playing in the same market as Nike is headquarter in ( Portland).

Facebook: www.facebook.com/eugenecivicalliance

Website: www.eugenecivicalliance.org

Twitter: @Eugenecivic