Fresno State has "shelved plans" for a $60M renovation of Bulldog Stadium, choosing instead to "upgrade the venue in incremental stages," according to Robert Kuwada of the FRESNO BEE. A source said that Fresno State will "focus on finding ways to improve" the student-athlete village and the Robert E. Duncan Athletic Building, which serves as the athletics department’s home. There is "no timetable for enhancements" to the stadium, which was opened in '80 and is "showing its age with seats that have faded to an odd hue." There also is "cracking in the walkways and seating areas" and "few fan amenities." The renovation project and creation of a Bulldog District around the venue were pushed by former AD Jim Bartko and "seen as essential for Fresno State to remain competitive in the Mountain West Conference and gain traction on a national level, not just in football but in all of its sports" (FRESNO BEE, 1/14). In Fresno, Marek Warszawski wrote, "Shelving renovations to Bulldog Stadium, home of the athletics department’s primary revenue engine, signifies a retreat from that position." What happens to the $15M in pledges that Bartko "raised for stadium renovations?" The donors who made them are "asking themselves the same question." Fans have to "wonder what coach Jeff Tedford thinks of this new course, and how it might impact his long-term future." Tedford and his staff have been "selling the spiffy renderings of a new and improved Bulldog Stadium to its last two recruiting classes" (FRESNO BEE, 1/14).
