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Kinnick Stadium begins new era with rededication, plaza dedication
Posted August 25, 2006
Related information: Photos from the rededication event IOWA CITY -- Historic Kinnick Stadium on the University of Iowa campus will be rededicated in a public ceremony on Friday, Sept. 1, at 4:00 p.m., after an $86.8 million, two-year renovation project.IOWA CITY -- Historic Kinnick Stadium on the University of Iowa campus will be rededicated in a public ceremony on Friday, Sept. 1, at 4:00 p.m., after an $86.8 million, two-year renovation project. The celebration will include the dedication of the new Krause Family Plaza on the stadium's south side along Melrose Avenue. In addition, teammates of 1939 Heisman Trophy winner and stadium namesake Nile Kinnick will unveil a new statue of Kinnick. The ceremony, which will take place on the Krause Family Plaza, will also feature remarks from UI Head Football Coach Kirk Ferentz; new UI Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Gary Barta; UI Interim President Gary Fethke; Robert N. Downer of the Board of Regents, State of Iowa; leadership benefactors W. A. "Bill" and Nancy S. Krause of West Des Moines, who committed $5 million to the renovation and for whom the plaza is named; and others. The renovation of Kinnick Stadium, which was built in 1929 as Iowa Stadium and renamed to honor Kinnick in 1972, was financed entirely without state funding or UI student tuition revenues. The modernization project included improvements designed to enhance football Saturdays at Kinnick Stadium for fans, staff, players and media, including:
Including the Krauses' gift, private contributors committed $15 million to the renovation as part of the UI's Good. Better. Best. Iowa fund-raising effort, which was conducted by the UI Foundation and which raised more than $1 billion for initiatives throughout the university. The campaign ran from Jan. 1, 1999, through Dec. 31, 2005. The remainder of the financing for the renovation came from gifts that qualify donors for suite and club-seating privileges; increased revenues from concession stands; and additional advertising revenue from the new scoreboards. Revenues from these sources in future years will retire the bonds necessary to finance the construction. Bill Krause is the co-founder and chairman of the board of Kum & Go of West Des Moines, which owns and operates more than 440 Kum & Go convenience stores throughout the Midwest. He received a UI Distinguished Alumni Award in 2000 and has served as a member of the National I-Club board of directors, including as president. The National I-Club named him "Hawk of the Year" in 1993. The UI acknowledges the UI Foundation as the preferred channel for private contributions that benefit all areas of the university. For more information about the foundation, visit its web site at www.uiowafoundation.org. Related information:
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