Save the Civic Stadium

Civic Stadium matters to our community.  Generations of local and non-local spectators have fond memories of summer evenings in Civic Stadium.  Fans say it was the "feel of the place" that made a game at Civic special.  The wooden grandstand, the hand-operated scoreboard and the view of the moonrise over the hills to the east all combined for a connection through time between today's families and friends and with families and friends going back to the 1930's.

Now the School District plans to sell or lease the property through an RFP process.  Three proposals have been submitted, only one of which would preserve the stadium. Although the stadium is listed in the National Register of Historic Places, the RFP process does not favor preservation of the stadium.  While the selection process assigns some points to preserving the stadium, the gesture is minor when compared to the primary goal of financial gain; therefore, it is quite likely that the School Board will vote to demolish the stadium.  

Save Civic Stadium (SCS), a non-profit group formed in 2006, submitted the only proposal that would save the stadium. SCS is working to increase support from the City of Eugene and others to counter demolition.  The SCS proposal would rehabilitate the grandstand to be used as a venue for professional soccer, youth sports, concerts, and a variety of community events. This plan is based upon a commissioned reuse feasibility study and related conditions reports.  More than 3700 supporters have signed Save Civic Stadium petitions and in less than a month $75,000 in pledges have been made to finance the initial stages of the SCS plan.  SCS has letters of support from the Friendly Area Neighbors (the organization for the neighborhood that includes the stadium), the United Soccer League (with interest in placing a team in Civic), Kidsports (Eugene's recreational sports program for youth) and local soccer enthusiasts.  Many other letters of support and public testimony have been submitted from a wide range of community members.

Although Civic appears dilapidated on its surface, it is structurally sound and an excellent candidate for rehabilitation.  A 2010 engineering report recommended some structural and seismic improvements but states that "the wood framing is in remarkably good condition for the age of the structure. Fortunately the roof has provided weather protection for most of the framing.  No checks were observed in any of the timber members. The bolted trusses were in excellent condition and appeared to be well-built." 

Civic Stadium would never have been constructed without the display of outstanding public support it received and the cooperation of the numerous civic agencies. This unique cohesion of community support illustrates the camaraderie apparent in WPA projects built throughout the country during the Depression era. It is time to reawaken this community spirit. This is Civic Stadium's last chance.

Note:  More information is available on the Save Civic Stadium (SCS) website: http://www.savecivicstadium.org/.  Also, it should be noted that it is quite likely that Civic Stadium will be selected as one of the 11 most endangered historic structures in the State of Oregon.  A decision will be announced late May 2011.

The information provided on Community Challenge pages is provided "as is," and the National Trust for Historic Preservation does not make any representations, endorsements, or warranties (either expressed or implied) on any comments, reviews, or suggestions posted. Neither does the National Trust assume responsibility or liability for the same.