SCPrepTalk

HASELDEN COLUMN: Biggest Florence stadium not best
Mark Haselden | Morning News | SCNow.com

I’ve covered several high school football games this year in the city of Florence, most of them at Florence Memorial Stadium while watching Wilson, West Florence or South Florence.

< Excerpt - full editorial at the headline link >

Any of you that have had the displeasure of visiting Flo Memorial, please feel free to follow the link and comment on the article.

Perhaps our city leaders have no idea what impression that relic makes on the thousands of people that visit our city each year to watch a football game against one of the THREE high schools that share that stadium.

I sent Haselden a email reguarding our P.O.S stadium and told him a new field house is a pipe dream, I'd be happy with a new LED scoreboard AS well as play clock!

I fully intended on using my position w/the booster club to talk to WF and Wilson and see about getting a new scoreboard, cuz if the one we have now kicks the bucket,
we are BIG trouble, since they haven't made parts for it in YEARS!!!

Option 1: When Crestwood and Lakewood were first built in Sumter, they shared District 2 Stadium in Dalzell (at the site of Hillcrest Middle School). For Lakewood, this is at least a 30 min trek clear across town Both schools did have their JV teams play at thier respective schools during this time. Back around 2007 the district decided to build stands on both sides of Lakewood's track and field/football practice and JV game facility and a press box on both sides. The field already had a decent scoreboard that would get the job done. Hence, J. Frank Baker Satdium was born and now all Lakewood home games are played on site. Crestwood still uses District 2 Stadium. I think Wilson is the closest school to Flo Memorial. Let them use it. There is room at West Florence and South Florence for the district to do the same thing that was done to Lakewood High. It doesn't have to be anything too fancy. The school's facilities can serve as the locker rooms so those do not have to be built at the stadium just yet. Each school would have a stadium to call their own.

Option 2: Florence Memorial needs a new press box, new scoreboard, play clocks, new restrooms, a visitors locker room, and may want to think about field turf because 3 teams use the field. It might save money in the long run knowing the field can't be torn up. Also depending on who is the home team, add some decorations, banners, balloons, etc. to make it feel like its yours. Don't leave it dull and drabby.

I went to see Willy Korn play at Byrnes. After seeing that stadium, and coming back home to watch the Bruins play, it's disgusting. It's embarrasing that the visitors have no locker room. The scoreboard looks like a 1980's YMCA scoreboard. I look forward to the day it can be upgraded.

micallen wrote:I went to see Willy Korn play at Byrnes. After seeing that stadium, and coming back home to watch the Bruins play, it's disgusting. It's embarrasing that the visitors have no locker room. The scoreboard looks like a 1980's YMCA scoreboard. I look forward to the day it can be upgraded.

Well you're a rare bird!!! You should read the awful stuff posted about Byrnes stadium being such a dump. The visitors side does need a fix, I'll admit.

micallen wrote:I went to see Willy Korn play at Byrnes. After seeing that stadium, and coming back home to watch the Bruins play, it's disgusting. It's embarrasing that the visitors have no locker room. The scoreboard looks like a 1980's YMCA scoreboard. I look forward to the day it can be upgraded.

Oh but they do....that baseball locker room by the restrooms that only fits like 20 people. It's more beneficial to stay outside and go under a tent lol.

bbrown1240 wrote:

micallen wrote:I went to see Willy Korn play at Byrnes. After seeing that stadium, and coming back home to watch the Bruins play, it's disgusting. It's embarrasing that the visitors have no locker room. The scoreboard looks like a 1980's YMCA scoreboard. I look forward to the day it can be upgraded.

Oh but they do....that baseball locker room by the restrooms that only fits like 20 people. It's more beneficial to stay outside and go under a tent lol.

I know. It's pitiful.

I say you force their hand. The city owns the stadium, and each of the schools I am sure pay rent on the usage of that stadium. Get your AD's together and go to a city council meeting with a list of demands. If they balk at what you are asking for, then tell your AD's to line up at the school board meeting with a plan to build a stadium at the 3 schools. I've always thought it was crazy for 3 schools to have to share in the first place.

The Stadium isn't in the city limits, I don't know who owns it. I always just assumed it was Florence SD1.