Facilities Update

 

Facilities Update

Alford inherited a boosters organization which had seen its number of annual fund members fall to about 9,000. Through a concerted effort to boost this, Alford and Seminole Boosters closed out this past year's annual fund with 12,500 active Seminole Boosters members.

Football operations facility update

A hot-button issue surrounding the state of FSU athletics is the status of the planned football operations facility, which will be attached to the FSU football practice facility.

Alford has been heavily involved in this process even before he took over as AD, and that has definitely remained the case the last few months.

"We're at 53, 54 million right now off the top my head (in money raised). Our timeline is still going strong. We think we'll break ground in about 10 months," Alford said.

Once the football team is out of the Moore Athletic Center, it will create more space for the rest of the FSU teams.

When FSU renovated its weight room last year, it made sure that the new equipment it purchased covered the needs of all the FSU sports programs because once football has its own building, that weight room will be exclusively for the non-football sports.

Football locker room renovation nearing completion

One of the first active projects Alford announced upon assuming the position of FSU AD was the renovation of FSU football's locker room.

The project began early this year and is set to be completed in March, just in time to be used for the first time during the Seminoles' spring game on April 9.

The future of Dick Howser Stadium

Ahead of the start of FSU baseball season, Alford also oversaw a few updates to Dick Howser Stadium.

The updates range from those fans can appreciate, such as new garnet-colored outfield walls and a fresh coat of paint across the stadium, to some behind-the-scenes updates like the construction of a new alumni locker room and other fixes.

Dick Howser Stadium has been the home of FSU baseball since 1983. There's been a debate for some time whether Howser should be the long-term home of the Seminoles or if a new stadium should be constructed to help FSU keep up with a quickly-evolving college baseball landscape.

Alford is adamant that Dick Howser Stadium is the home of FSU baseball "for now" but said some things will have to be evaluated to see if it is the best long-term option for the Seminoles.

"I don't see it changing anytime soon. It's at a beautiful place on campus. We're gonna, at some point, do a stadium assessment and see if there are any structural deficiencies or if it's sound," Alford said.

"From there, (we'll) make a determination whether we build new or go in and make a big impact on the current (stadium). I have great ideas over there, looking at what can be done as long as we have sound roots in that facility."

What is next for Alford's 10-year plan?

Before he even began as FSU AD, Alford told the Democrat about his 10-year plan for the FSU athletic department.

This plan was primarily focused on creating a timeline to space out potential renovations projects for FSU's various athletic facilities.

While not able to reveal a ton of specifics about the timeline, Alford says this plan has been something he's met with FSU officials about a few times since taking over.

"I'm working with campus right now on a master plan, making sure we're in alignment on what their needs are, what our needs are and making sure that our alignment and vision matches. That's going to take time. We've already had several meetings on it since I've been here, though, because it is something that is very important to me about making sure that our vision is set forth because we can only plan and process what we know is coming," Alford said.